Ultrawoman Aegis
by dfox33
Summary: *Chapter 14 up* A new Ultra Warrior is sent to protect Earth when a New Age of Monsters begins ten years after Mebius left. Adopting a human form, she joins Raptor Team, the elite combat team of the newest anti-monster defense organization, GEAR. However, her past is shrouded in mystery, and during her time on Earth she begins regaining the memories she had lost.
1. Chapter 1: Arrival of Aegis

**Chapter 1: Arrival of Aegis**

The peaceful night sky was shattered by a strange sphere of light suddenly rocketting through the air, crashing into a forest with such force that the ground tembled, trees were uprooted and sent flying along with several pounds of dirt and leaving a huge crater in the middle of the forest. Silently, a huge, humanoid figure stood up from where the sphere of light had landed. She looked around, silently observing her surroundings before walking away from the crashsite, seemingly shrinking as she goes. Very soon, the forest became quiet again. After a while, a female figure emerged from the forest, silently walking down the path towards a nearby town.

Meanwhile, in another part of Japan, a drunken man stepped out of a bar, clearly unable to stand properly. He staggered into an alley where he began puking. Losing his balance, he fell backwards, covering his shirt in puke. Still unable to think clearly, he looked up, only to see a strange creature in front of him.

"Who're ...what?" was all he could ask before the creature opened a large mouth in the centre of its stomach and descended onto him.

* * *

_In the year 2013, the United Nations set up Global Emergency Active Responders, commonly known as GEAR, all around the world in order to combat any monster threats after scientists predicted that these destructive creatures will once again rise to terrorize humanity. For two years, GEAR has only encountered a few monster attacks, and in all encounters the local military were able to handle the monsters, prompting many to question the need for GEAR and the accuracy of the scientists' prediction._

_GEAR Japan is located on Bastion Cove, an artificial island built in Tokyo Bay that houses the entire GEAR Japan Headquarters. The main building houses the most of the facilities as well as the Scientific Research and Investigation Division. The second building houses the GEAR Combat Infantry (GCI) Barracks, gym, swimming pool, track field and the Engineering and Mechanical Corps. On the top floor of the second building is the Operations Room of GEAR Japan's elite anti-monster combat team, known as Raptor Team. From here, the operators of Raptor Team check for any new attacks daily via SCAN, known as Satellite Crisis Alert Network, a state-of-the-art satellite system that tracks monster attacks worldwide._

In the Operations Room of Raptor Team, Samegawa Toru and Tendou Ayane sat around their desk lazily. In front of them were five TV screens, with the one in the middle being the biggest and showing a digital map with the words 'SCAN' on the top right-hand corner and the others showing two news channel, the interior of a lift, and what appears to be a database of monsters. Each screen was marked by a number except for the big one in the middle.

Meanwhile, at the shooting range, two young men are competing to see who can get the highest score in fifteen seconds. While the good-looking man fired several shots quickly, the other man, who wore a protective pair of goggles, calmly fired off a few shots instead. Upon finishing, the two off them looked at their number of targets.

"Looks like I beat you, Jake," the good-looking man, Aojima Ren, said smugly to the other, Jake Wong as he hit three more targets than the latter.

"Maybe, Ren, but wait till you see the scores," a female with auburn hair, Moriumi Kohaku, said as she pressed a button in the range control room, bringing the targets up front.

Removing his goggles, Jake grinned as Ren looked in stunned silence. Every target Jake had hit were in the '100 points' area while Ren hit everywhere but the highest scoring area.

"1200 to 930. You get to buy me and Kohaku dinner tonight, Ren. Again."

At another location, a chisel-faced man walked down the corridor with a Caucasian. Both were carrying several documents as they entered the lift. The chisel-faced man is captain Iketani Shintaro, leader of Raptor Team

"Any idea what this is all about, captain?" the caucasian, Dean Barrett, asked.

"No idea, Dean. Whatever it is, the higher-ups are clearly spooked by it. First, an unknown object from space crashes in some forest in Iwate last night. Then this morning, a drunk was discovered dead in Kobe, with police saying that the man appeared to be drained of blood."

The two of them got out of the lift and into the Ops Room. Startled by their sudden appearance, Ayane and Toru jumped from their seats.

"Lazing around as usual, I see." Shintaro said as he revealed the documents he and Ian had been carrying onto the table.

"Those are..."

"Yes. Apparently while all of us were asleep last night, SCAN picked up two signals. One in Iwate and another in Kobe, Hyogo. Ayane, where are Kohaku, Jake and Ren?"

"Having a friendly competition in the shooting range."

"Get them up here, I have assignments for everyone."

"No need for that, we're here already," Ren said as he, Jake and Kohaku stepped out of the lift into the Ops Room.

"You lost again, right?" Toru asked Ren, who grimaced at the question.

"Which is why Jake is our team's sniper. Anyways, I want Jake to go with Kohaku to Iwate, to investigate what appeared to be a meteor crash. Apparently there are eyewitnesses there, along with Dr Kurosaki, since it happened near her town. She'll meet you both there. Ren, you come with me and Dean to investigate a strange death in Kobe. We'll move out in 1015 hours."

"Roger!" the rest of Raptor Team answered as they began to prepare, changing into their proper uniforms and checking their gear in the armoury.

* * *

A woman in her early 50s watched as a high-tech fighter jet painted green and black landed in the outskirts of a town, near the forest. She is accompanied by a rather pretty girl with short hair that reaches past her chin. She wore a black t-shirt with a grey jacket and jeans.

Kohaku and Jake got out from the jet and removed their helmets. As the walked towards DrKurosaki, Kohaku tied her hair in a ponytail while Jake put on a baseball cap with the Raptor Team's logo on it.

"I see you two are getting the hang of the Storm Kestrel," Dr Kurosaki said as they excahnged handshakes.

"it's been a while, Doctor," Jake replied with a smile.

"Well, first off let me introduce you two to my new assistant. This is Hidetate Yuka."

"Nice to meet you both," the short-haired girl, Yuka, greeted.

"You too. Anyway, Doctor, we were told to investigate the crash in the forest behind us. Do you have any idea on what it could be?"

"The both of us would like to investigate ourselves, but I forgot to bring my GEAR clearance, so the police force won't let us through."

"Easily settled, I'll deal with them."

Jake waked over to one of the police officers guarding the entrance of the forest. After a while, he beckoned for Dr Kurosaki, Yuka and Kohaku to come over. The four of them entered the forest guided by two police officers. After fifteen minutes, they arrived at the crash site.

"Look at the size of the crater! What kind of impact is this?" Kohaku exclaimed as she observed the destruction around the area. Several uprooted trees laid around the crater. Some of the trees are even impaled into rocks.

"Well, the crater's here, but where's the object that caused it?" Jake asked.

"This is very interesting. Yuka, gather some of the dirt around the crater in this jar. I'll do some research on it to see what caused the crash in my lab later," Dr Kurosaki said. Yuka nodded and scrambled down the crater, gathering some of the dirt in it.

"Such an eager young lady, I wish my previous assistant was like her."

"Now that you mentioned it, what happened to him? His name was... erm... Katsuki? Katsuma?"

"Katsuima Junichi. Quitted a few months back. I did not realize that he had stolen an experimental non-lethal weapon we were developing until it turned up in a warehouse in Chiba during a police raid for illegal arms smuggling. By then, it had ben modified into a lethal explosive weapon. He was never arrested."

Just then, Yuka returned, now with a jar full of soil, dirt and a few worms in her hands.

"I'm done, ma'am."

"Good work, let's bring it back to our lab. We'll see what we can find out from it."

* * *

Three unique fighter jets coloured green and grey landed in the airport of Kobe. After a while, Ren, Dean and Captain Iketani exited the airport and walked towards a taxi stand, where an armoured van with GEAR Japan's logo on its sides took them to the site where the death occured.

"So, what happened?" captain Iketani asked the driver, a young man with blonde hair and an atheletic build. His eyes are unique- one blue and one brown.

"I'm not sure, sir. According to the reports, this man was not the first victim. Police followed a trail of blood to an abandoned factory where they found several bodies belonging to people that were reported missing for the past two months. All of them were found with no blood in them."

"So what are we dealing with, a vampire? We'll need crosses and garlic, not laser guns," Ren joked.

"That was pretty lame," Dean replied, prompting Ren to give him an irritated look.

"My main concern is how all this happened right under the nose of SCAN? Could I be that the system is faulty?"

"Either way, we're here. Thanks for the ride, soldier."

The three men got off the vehicle and the driver drove off. After it had reached a bridge far from the dropoff point, the driver silently got out and went to the back of the vehicle, opening the doors to reveal a bodybag inside the van's back compartment.

"See ya around, buddy," the driver said as he unzipped the bag, letting the real driver's corpse fall into the river below.

* * *

"Yep, definitely drained of blood," Dean said as he got up from investigating the bodies. All around him, police officers worked to keep the curious onlookers away from the scene.

Ren and Captain Iketani walked up to Dean, who was taking down notes on the surrounding areas.

"We're going into the factory, you stay here and see if you can dig up any other clues as to what happened here."

Captain Iketani and Ren entered the factory accompanied by a few police officers and GCI troopers. The stench was unbearable, and many rusty chains hung down from the ceiling. The men pressed on deeper into the factory when captain Iketani held out his fist, indicating for everyone to stop.

"You hear that?"

"Yeah, some strange whirling noise. It's coming from that room."

The men silently fast-walked towards the room where the noise was coming from. They peeked into the room only to find a strange device with metallic plates spinning around a rod.

"What is this thing?" one of the police officers asked.

"I don't know, but we're shutting it down," Captain Iketani replied. Without waiting for command, Ren opened fire at the device with his Dual Shooter, causing the device to go up in flames.

* * *

Ayane and Toru were slacking off in their seats when the screen showing the digital map switched to show the area where Ren, Dean and Captain Iketani were, with a large red circle blinking in the map. An alarm also began ringing.

"What the-" Toru sat up straight and looked at the screen.

"A monster has appeared?" Ayane asked.

"We better inform captain right away! Ayane, alert him at once while I go through the database and try to identify that creature."

* * *

"What are you doing? I was about to find out how to switch it off!"

"Quickest method to turn it off, captain."

"You nitwit, what if something bad happens? What in the world? Ayane? What is it? What? SCAN picked up something directly in front of us. Are you sur-"

Capain Iketani was cut off mid sentence by a strange rumbling. The ground under the device broke opened, and a strange insect-like creature burst from it. It has three eyes, a body resembling a stag-beetle and its mouth is located in its stomach area.

"Shoot! Shoot!"

The men opened fire on the creature, but all it did was get more angry. It seized an unlucky police officer in one of its claws and from its mouth, a proboscis shot out and stabbed the man, draining blood from him as the others continue to shoot at it.

"We have to retreat before anyone lese gets killed!" Ren shouted.

"Get out, everyone! Now!"

The men quickly abandoned the fight and escaped the factroy. The monster roared as it tossed the dead officer aside and chased after them, growing in size at every step.

The men ran out, screaming at the others to escape. Dean looked up, only to see a large insect monster burst from the factory, showering debris everywhere. The onlookers scream and ran as police officers and GCI troopers helped to evacuate them. Captain Iketani grabbed Dean as they ran past him and dragged him to a nearby GCI Armoured Vehicle.

"Where are we going?"

"To the airport, of course! We need our Storm Sparrows to fight that thing!" Ren answered Dean angrily.

"You shot the device! Look at what happened!" Captain Iketani roared at the hot-headed member as he tossed Ren into the vehicle, followed by Dean scramblnig in before he got in himself.

"Get us to the airport, soldier!" Captain Iketani said to the driver, who was panicking at the sight of a 50-metre tall monster smashing a narby building. The driver quickly nodded and sped off. Arriving at the airport, the three Raptor Team members raced to their Storm Sparrows. Within seconds, the three Storm Sparrows have taken off and are headed for the monster.

* * *

"Hmm... not much to tell, but the soil contains some strange substance," Dr Kurosaki said as she viewed a sample of the soil Yuka collected under a microscope. At the same time, Yuka switched on the television in the lab to look at the news.

"It is chaos down the streets of Kobe as GEAR's Raptor Team take on a gigantic creature that burst from a factory not long ago. That factory was the location of this morning's top news when police discovered the corpses of twenty-three people reported missing over the past two months after a murder near a nightclub located not far from it," the newscaster said. Live footage is then shown on the screen as the insect monster encountered by Captain Iketani's group rampaged down the streets, with the Storm Sparrows firing their weapons at it.

"Oh my..." Kohaku said, watching the news with horror.

"Doctor, are you seeing this?" Jake called out.

"Yes, you guys go on ahead. I'll send the results to you all later."

"Good luck with that monster," Yuka said as the two Raptor Team members waved goodbye and got into the Storm Kestrel. The Storm Kestrel took off and headed at full speed towards Kobe.

Yuka silently watch them go as Dr Kurosaki came out to accompany her.

"Do you think they can take it down on their own, doctor?"

"No, of course. In the past two years, we have had seven monster attacks. All seven times we took one week to bring the monster down with the help of the JSDF."

"Then I think its time I introduce myself for real. Thanks for your help, Dr Kurosaki."

"No problem. Do what you do best, Aegis."

"Doctor, before i go, one last request?"

"Yes?"

"Can you get me into Raptor Team?"

"That I can't. But I can get you into GEAR. From there, you will have to work your way up to achieve a spot in Raptor Team. Nothing comes free in this world, even for an Ultra."

"I understand, doctor. All right, I'm going in!"

Yuka pulled the sleeves of her jacket back, revealing a pair of silver engraved bracers with a blue diamond-shaped jewel on each of them. She punches both her fists forward, then withdraws them into an 'X' position in front of her chest. Immediately, Yuka is engulfed by light.

"Good luck, Ultrawoman Aegis," Dr Kurosaki whispered as the ball of light Yuka was in lifted to the sky and flew towards the city of Kobe.

* * *

The Storm Kestrel joined the Storm Sparrows and the JSADF in fighting the gigantic monster as Toru explained the creature to Raptor Team.

"That monster is Belnam, an alien insect monster that appeared in Taiwan in the year 1987. It is believed to be telepathic. Be careful, it can fire energy beams from its mouth. And its claws can tear through metal."

"That's obvious, seeing how it just tore down ten city blocks in front of us," Ren replied as he fired a volley of missiles at Belnam.

"Kohaku, Jake, fire your cannon!" Captain Iketani ordered.

"Roger!" the two of them replied as Kohaku brought the Storm Kestrel behind Belnam. Jake pressed down on the trigger hard. Energy began gathering in the barrel of the laser cannon of the Storm Kestrel before releasing a beam of energy that kit Belnam in the back. Belnam screeched in pain as it stumbled.

"That hurt it, give it another one Jake!" Kohaku said.

Jake was about to fire when his expression suddenly changed into one of disbelief. Kohaku turned back only to find herself face to face with what appears to be a very angry Belnam. The insect monster screched and grabbed hold of the Sky Kestrel. It began trying to crush the aircraft.

"Pathetic humans! How dare you hurt me?" a raspy male-sounding voice sounded in the heads of jake and Kohaku. Both of them were stunned to realize that it was Belnam speaking to them through telepathy.

"Dammit! It got the Storm Kestrel, Captain!" Ren shouted through the intercom.

"Captain, I can't get a clear shot!" Dean said, his voice sounding desperate.

"What's it trying to do, cursh the Kestrel?"

"I think it's trying to tear it apart! What do we do Captain?"

Captain Iketani fired his weapons at Belnam's arms and claws, but the insect monster refused to let go of the Kestrel.

Inside the Storm Kestrel, Kohaku desperately tried to break free from Belnam's grip. Jake pulled out his Dual Shooter, ready to smash open the cockpit and shoot at Belnam when sparks began flying from the controls.

"Can we eject?" Jake asked.

"We can't! The eject mechanism must have been damaged by Belnam's crushing attempt!"

"Argh! Kohaku, open the cockpit! I'll shoot that bug myself!"

"I can't either! It's holding the cockpit shut!"

Jake began smashing against the plexiglass.

Realizing that the Kestrel was not going to be torn into two, Belnam screeched as he prepared to hurl the Kestrel to the ground. Kohaku and Jake closed their eyes in anticipation.

"Die, humans!"

Then a ball of light smashed into Belnam.

Caught unawares, Belnam was thrown into a building, releasing his grip on the Kestrel. The ball of light swerved towards the Kestrel, bringing it safely to the ground as it dispersed to reveal a silver and blue giantess.

Kohaku and Jake opened their eyes and stared at their savior in disbelief. Meanwhile, Ren, captain Iketani and Dean watched in shock. Back at Bastion Cove, Ayane and Toru stared at the screen, which was showing live feed video of the battle through SCAN.

Many civilians, police officers and JSDF soldiers also stopped in their tracks to stare at the mysterious giantess, then they realized what she was.

"An Ultrawoman! We're saved!"

The crowd began cheering madly.

"Captain, who is that?" Dean asked.

"Many years ago, a race of giants made of light came to Earth from a place called the Land of Light in Nebula M78. As far as I know, Earth have been protected by these giants for a long time. We call them, 'Ultramen'."

"Ultraman? This one is clearly female. She's an Ultrawoman," Ren chipped in.

"Yes, and it's been ten years since an Ultra appeared on Earth. The last ones to appear on Earth are Ultramen Mebius and Hikari."

The Ultrawoman stood up after leaving the Storm Kestrel in a safe place. She faced Belnam and got into her fighting posture. Belnam screeched in anger as he approaches her. Both began conversing through telepathy.

"What are you? How dare you disturb my hunting grounds? Do you want to end up like those humans?"

"I am Ultrawoman Aegis, a member of the Space Garrison's Silver Crusaders. My duty is to protect Earth from any threats such as you. Stand down, Belnam, so that I won't have to destroy you."

"Rargh! I've heard of your people, you self-proclaimed protectors of Earth! You think you can beat me? Prepare to die, Ultrawoman Aegis!"

With that, Belnam charged at Aegis, who countered it into a powerslam. Knowing that she won't be able to reason with Belnam, all Aegis could do was defeat him in and Aegis exchanged blows before Belnam fired his beam attack at her. Aegis held her palms out, creating a red energy shield in front of her which reflected Belnam's attack back to him.

Belnam screeched in pain as he fell onto his knees, holding his mouth in pain. Generating energy into her right arm, Aegis performed a quick, sweeping motion, firing a curved energy blast at Belnam, dealing much damage to the alien monster. Belnam got up and charged at her again, but Aegis caught him with a kick, delivered a few chops and punches before spinebusting him.

"This is your last chance, Belnam! Surrender and i'll let you leave in peace!" Aegis demanded through telepathy.

"Curse you, Ultrawoman Aegis! I won't lose to you!" Belnam replied defiantly as he got up charged at Aegis once more.

Saddened, Aegis placed both her arms across her chest in an 'X' position, charging up electrical and light energy into her arms. She then spread her arms sideways quickly before placing back into an 'L' shape, firing her energy beam at Belnam. Belnam screeched in pain as the beam tore through his body like a railgun. Within seconds, Belnam was dead, his body collapsing to the ground before exploding.

Everyone began cheeering for Aegis, happy that she had won. Aegis silently looked at the area where Belnam fell. Clenching her fists, she turned and walk a few steps away from the battlefield.

With a single "Shuwatch!", Aegis took off into the sky.

* * *

Dr Kurosaki watched as a bright sphere of light descended in front of her house, disappearing to reveal Yuka inside.

"How did it go?"

"I had to do it. I don't understand why he won't give up even after he was so injured."

"Some people are like that. Even though he was evil and fed on innocents, I want you to remember his fighting spirit. Do not ever give up even when the odds are against you. Now, I want to show you something."

"What is it, doctor?"

Dr Kurosaki handed over an envelope with GEAR Japan's logo on it to Yuka, who opened it and began reading the letter.

"To Hidetate Yuka, this is captain Iketani Shitaro of GEAR Japan Raptor Team. I have received word about you from Dr Kurosaki. This is under the table, but I'm willing to pull some strings to get you into our team. However, you must prove yourself deserving of a place in Raptor Team before we officially induct you. Jake Wong and Samegawa Toru will come to pick you up from Dr Kurosaki's house. Best of luck."

Yuka looked up at Dr Kurosaki, overwhelmed by gratitude.

"I... I don't know what to say, doctor."

"Take it as a reward for saving Kobe, Yuka. Come, let's go for lunch."

Yuka nodded as she followed Dr Kurosaki into her house.

* * *

Somewhere in Tokyo, in the dead of night, a shadowy figure walked down the streets

The fake driver who drove captain Iketani and his men in Kobe silently walked down an alley, stopping at a brick wall. He removed a brick and placed his hand inside. A clicking sound was heard as part of the brick wall moved backwards and then to the side, revealing a ladder that goes underground. The fake driver replaced the brick and began climbing down the ladder as the fake brick wall moved back into position.

The fake driver climbed down the ladder into a dimly lighted room filled with weapons, maps and a computer. Sitting down on a sofa, he switched on the television in the room. Instead of any channels, a mysterious claked figure appeared on the screen.

"Mr Umbrager, it would seem that Belnam has failed. Also, the device we used to jam SCAN's readings in the area was also destroyed by one of Raptor Team's members. And you should be aware that there is an Ultrawoman on Earth."

"As expected of my lord Darkaizer. Never mind about today's events. For now, just keep spying for us and do nothing else. I'll be giving you another mission soon, Katsuima Junichi."

"Of course, Mr Umbrager, as long as you guys keep paying me and helping me remain under the radar. After all, a deal is a deal," Junichi said as he gave an evil smile.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Proflie: Belnam

Origins: Original creation

An alien monster that resembles an insect, it feeds on blood to survive. Capable of some telepathy, they can fire laser beams from their mouth and also grow from human size to their giant size.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Monster Fight**

As GEAR studied the device that had prevented SCAN from detecting Belnam, Raptor Team welcomes Yuka into their ranks. However, there's no time to celebrate for Kemujira has been spotted in Nikaho, Akita. Worst, Birdon appears as well, resulting in Aegis and Raptor team having to deal with two brawling monsters


	2. Chapter 2: Monster Fight

**Chapter 2: Monster Fight**

"It's been three days. I want results, Dr Kurosaki. Any idea on what this device does?"

Captain Iketani stood with Dr Kurosaki as lab techs dismantled and studied the machine he and Ren found in the warehouse before Belnam's attack.

"According to the earlier reports, this machine was designed to mess with SCAN's readings, preventing the system from detecting any monsters in the area. Not only that, but it is alien in origin."

"But how did they built this thing? No satellite belonging to SCAN's system has been reported missing so the aliens could not have used one of them as a reference."

"Someone knew about the system and built this machine. We might have been infiltrated. I have notified the Director about this. He has given the order to increase security measures. Anyway, about your request for information about the blue and silver giantess, I believed you have heard of Ultraman?"

"Of course I have. Several of them came to Earth as its guardian against monsters and alien insurgents. Are you saying that this giantess is one of them?"

"Yes. I have given her the callsign of Aegis. What do you think."

"No comment about this, but if she's an Ultra, then I don't see any cause to worry about."

"General Izuki sees things differently though. He was ranting about how she might be a threat in the future and that we should not trust her so easily."

"Screw Izuki. That man's a war hawk and a conspiracy theorist. Anything that does not go his way, he claims it's a plot against him. Even the Director has barred him from his office. He's only allowed to stay because he is a good strategist."

Meanwhile, outside the labaratory, a cleaner silently wheeled a trolley full of cleaning equipment and a trash bag filled with research notes and electronics instead of garbage down the corridor. The cleaner looked up as he walked, revealing a blue-coloured left eye. Katsuima Junichi silently walked past two security guards and into the garage, where he dumped his stolen items into his van and proceeded to drive off.

* * *

"Since the captain is not here, I guess I'll make the introductions. Everyone, this is our new member, Hidetate Yuka," Jake said as Kohaku gestured for Yuka to enter the Ops Room.

Almost immediately, Yuka found herself pelted with greetings and questions about her by the rest of the team. Unlike the others, Yuka was wearing the uniform of a GCI soldier instead of Raptor Team's uniform. Kohaku waddled through everyone to rescue her from the barrage. The only person not showing any interest in the newcomer is Ren, who simply stood at a side watching the others.

"I'm Ayane, this is Toru, you've met Kohaku, and that's Jake, and Dean and Ren."

"How do you do? I'm the tech expert here..."

"I was from New York, and Jake over there transferred here not long ago. He's from Singapore..."

"i can introduce myself, Dean. Anyway nice to meet you. And that's... Ren?"

Not realizing the situation, Yuka walked towards the sulknig Ren and greeted him before offering her hand.

"I'm Hidetate Yuka. I hope we can work together well in the future. Nice to meet... you?"

"I don't talk to boot-lickers."

The others immediately began to feel the tension. Kohaku quickly tried to defuse the situation

"Er... hey, Yuka, I'll show you around the other half of the base. Come with me, I'll take you to the cafeteria first," she said as she dragged a stunned Yuka out the room.

Jake waited for them both to leave before walking towards Ren.

"I can tell from your expression. What's with you not being happy about her being here?"

"Nothing, leave me alone."

"Dude, everyone could tell. Look around."

True enough, everyone was looking at him, already guessing why he had such a foul look on his face.

"Didn't you all know? Captain Iketani pulled strings to get her in. The rest of us have to work our way up here. It's not fair at all."

Toru snorted.

"Why do you care so much? She only skipped the selection part. She still did take the rescue, combat and flight tests like the rest of us. Well, except me, heh."

"You are a special case, Toru. I just don't feel-"

"We all saw the test results. Don't use Captain's string-pulling as an excuse for your envy," Ayane replied.

Ren simply growled and left the room. The others watched him leave, unsure of how the situation might end.

"We're getting a transfer from the JSADF next month. I hope he does not act like this again. Kohaku was smart to quickly take Yuka out of the room," Dean finally said, annoyed with Ren's behaviour.

"It'll blow over soon, don't worry about him," Jake replied.

Just then, the screen began blinking. Soon, a map was shown of Nikaho, Akita. Two red dots are blinknig on the map.

"T.. Two?" Toru spluttered. Ayane brought up a screen to see what monsters did SCAN detected.

"Kemujira and Birdon? This could get ugly," Jake said as the images of the two monsters appeared on screen.

"Why is that?"

"Birdon feeds on Kemujira, and Kemujira is not likely to let itself be eaten so easily. Imagine two monsters beating the crap out of each other in the middle of a populated city."

"What the hell are you people doing? Grab your helmets and move already!" Captain Iketani's voice came in through the intercom.

* * *

The Storm Sparrows and Kestrel flew towards the site where the two monsters were predicted to clash with each other. True enough, Birdon and Kemujira were already brawling with each other. Several buildingas have already been wrecked and chaos was rampant in the streets as civilians ran for their lives.

"You guys ready for this?" Dean asked through the intercom.

"Er... Why am I on the ground?" Jake said through the intercom. He was with a squad of GCI soldiers who were setting up mortars, loading rockets into their launchers and preparing their GCI Armoured Vehicles' laser cannons.

"Cuz we need to make room for Yuka in a Storm Sparrow," Kohaku replied as Dean snickered behind her, having taken over as the gunner of the Storm Kestrel.

"Hmph, well, at least I have a new toy to play with."

Jake opened a case at his feet, putting together parts of a gun until he had a high-tech sniper rifle in his hands.

"How does this work, Toru? Or do I use it like any other snipers?"

"The Blitz Sniper Rifle works like any other sniper rifle. However, I made some adjustments to it before it was released to you. Every shot you take will probably be strong enough to shoot a small chunk of concrete off a building," Toru replied through the intercom.

"What about the recoil? I don't want a dislocated shoulder."

"I've modified the stock to prevent such an incident, so don't worry about it."

"All right, everyone. I want those two monsters either dead or taking their fight elsewhere. Let's do this!" Captain Iketani said as he sped up his Storm Sparrow.

"Cap, do you think the Ultrawoman would show up?"

"I have no idea, Dean, though I'll be happy if she does. Anyway, Dr Kurosaki has given her the name 'Aegis' so that's what we would be calling her from now on. Apparently the crash in Iwate was apparently the result of her arrival. Either way, we still have to stop those two beasts. Concentrate on the battle, everyone."

"Yuka, how are you holding up?" Kohaku asked.

"I'm fine! I've been in the simulations so many times the controls are rather easy for me."

"This is your first time in actual combat. Don't get cocky," Ren replied, still unhappy about Yuka's joining.

"Don't worry, I'll do my best," Yuka replied, uncomfortable with the coldness in Ren's voice.

The aircrafts neared the two brawling monsters and opened fire. Sparks and pieces flew off the two monsters but did not deter them from their battle. Birdon swiped at Kemujira, sending it toppling to the ground. Kemujira, however, managed to spit out some webbing that entangles Birdon. Using this opportunity, Kemujira pulled Birdon to the ground along with it. The aircrafts opened fire on the two monsters as they picked themselves up. It was then did Birdon noticed them. Opening its beak, it fired several fireballs at the aircrafts.

"Woah! Watch out!" Dean cried as Kohaku steered the Storm Kestrel out of the way. The Storm Sparrows, on the other hand, nimbly weaved past the fireball attacks and fired their weapons right into Birdon's face. Birdon screeched in pain as it fell down again. Kemujira, however, turned around and released a puff of yellowish-green smoke.

"What the... Did it just _farted_? Gas masks on, everyone. Begin the attack in ten seconds," Jake said as the stinking smoke reaches his position. The GCI soldiers rushed back to their vehicles for gas masks with one of them thowing a gas mask to Jake, who quickly put it on. Now protected from the smoke, they fired their weapons at the two monsters. While the initial few hit, the smoke eventually got so dense that most of the mortar rounds, laser shots and rockets were practically missing their targets.

"Argh, it's too thick. Pack up guys. We're moving to another location."

"Cap, the ground team's being forced to another location by the smoke," Kohaku said.

"I can see that. We'll target Kemujira first."

The Sky Sparrows swopped in and fired a barrage of missiles and lasers at the insect monster, knocking it to the ground. Birdon, however, continued to attack them, now completely ignoring Kemujira.

Meanwhile, Jake and his men have reached a 'fresher' location and had resumed their ground attacks on the two monsters. Jake lifted the Blitz Sniper Rifle and took aim at Kemujira. Slowly, he steadied his weapon, and pressed the trigger.

The shot flew through the air and hit home in one of Kemujira's eyes. The pain and shock literally caused Kemujira to jump into the air from its face-down position, rotating a full 180 degrees on its feet and landing on its back, thrashing around in pain. This distracted Birdon, who turned to look at its prey, confused.

"It's distracted! Cap, I'm going in!"

"Don't be ridiculous! What are you trying to pull?" Ren demanded.

"Do it, Yuka," Captain Iketani replied in approval.

"What? Cap, are you serious? She's a rookie..."

"Ren, shut up!" Jake's voice burst through the intercom, a tone of irritation in it. Ren quickly stopped complaining, since Jake is notorious around Bastion Cove for his rare but horrifying temper.

Yuka began speeding towards Birdon, firing her Storm Sparrow's weapons. She successfully caused Birdon to take a few steps back, trying to shake its head clear from her attack.

"Nice one, Yuka!" Dean called out.

"It's stunned! And I think Jake got Kemujira from his position. I think it's best that we concentrate our attack on Kemujira!"

"Good idea, Yuka. That will be one less monster to deal wi- Ren! What are you doing?"

Ren was now speeding towards Birdon, firing his Storm Sparrow's weapons wildly at it.

had to work my way into the team. I've put in effort while she did not. All she did was a simple maneuver and everyone's congratulating her. I can do it better than her!

With that thought in mind, Ren continued to charge at Birdon. Unfortunately, he failed to realize that Yuka had attacked Birdon when it was _distracted_. Right now, Birdon was well aware of Ren. Opening its beak, it fired a single fireball at Ren's Storm Sparrow.

"Ren!" Captain Iketani shouted as Ren's Storm Sparrow took the full hit and spiralled to the ground, crashing into the back of a building. Explosions could be seen at the site where he crashed.

"Dammit! That stupid, hot-headed bastard!" Jake cursed as he watched the destruction happening.

Birdon gave a victory cry and turned its attention back to Kemujira, only to see it tunnelling away. Birdon immediately grab hold of Kemujira, stopping its escape attempt.

"Ren? Ren! Answer us!" Yuka tried getting a response from Ren. There was none.

"Captain! I'm going down there!"

Without waiting for a reply, Yuka quickly landed her Storm Sparrow and jumped out of the cockpit, runing towards the crashsite. She was not alone. Jake and two GCI soldiers were also running to Ren's aid as fast as they could. Seeing them reaching Ren, yuka stopped and summoned her Shield Bracelets, her transformation item. Two engraved, silver bracers appeared on both her wrists as she transformed into Aegis. Aegis then leapt to the air before bringing her heels down on both monsters, then delivering blows and kicks to them, forcing them apart.

"Cap, it's the Ultrawoman... Aegis!" Dean said.

"Good, we better support her in this battle."

Meanwhile, Jake and the two soldiers finally found the wreckage of the Storm Sparrow. Ren laid face-down by its side, not stirring.

"Ren!" Jake called out as he rushed to his side. One of the soldiers rolled him over, only to find blood dripping from his head. Jake quickly felt his pulse.

"He's alive, but weak and in critical condition. Damn this... Kohaku, are you there? We need you down here, fast!"

"Roger, I'm landing right now!" Kohaku said as she broke off from engagement and started to find a place to land the Storm Kerstrel, leaving Captain Iketani the only Raptor team member left fighting alongside Aegis.

Aegis kicked at Birdon, then turned around to counter an attack attempt from Kemujira. She then remembered how Birdon bested her seniors Taro and Zoffy, and quickly leapt to another position so that she can see both monsters. Kemujira screeched and fired webbing from its mouth, catching Aegis off guard. Her arms tightly bound to her side, Aegis is then tackled by Kemujira, sending her crashing into a few buildings. Birdon took this opportunity to fire several fireballs at her, dealing more damage to her. Both monsters then began working together, delivering a few kicks and blows to her before Kemujira grabbed some of the webbing that binds Aegis and swung her into another group of buildings. At this point, Aegis's Color Timer has begun to blink.

Kemujira began advancing on Aegis, but then Birdon stabbed Kemujira in the back, literally, with its beak. Kemujira fell to the ground, screeching in pain as Birdon stabbed it a few more times. This attacks, coupled with a critical wound it had receive from Jake, was too much for Kemujira to handle and it finally expired.

Letting out another victory cry, Birdon turned to deal with Aegis, who had just broke free of her bindings. Aegis nimbly avoided the fireballs and pecks but Birdon's aggressive advance prevented Aegis from being able to fight back properly.

Seeing Aegis in trouble, Captain Iketani took aim and fired at Birdon's sacs. While it did little damage, it was enough to cause pain for Birdon to take a few steps back, holding its sacs. Taking this opportunity, Aegis charged up electrical energy into her right leg, then performed a roundhouse kick on Birdon. The impact launched Birdon sideways, sending it crashing down into the bay. Aegis followed, getting into a wrestling match with Birdon, their fight sending waves onto the docks and shore. Finally, Aegis leapt off Birdon, took a few steps back, and charging up her right arm with energy, she swung it sideways in a chopping manner, sending an arc of energy at Birdon, lopping its head off. With both monsters now longer a threat, Aegis took off to the sky.

* * *

"What the hell? This are just useless crap!"

Junichi angrily crumpled and threw the notes behind him, realizing that he had taken the wrong documents. Having overheard that GEAR Japan was making a new weapon, he had agreed to stole their research notes for Umbrager. Apparently, someone knew that there was a person stealing from the base for the past few days and have left useless documents in place of important notes.

Junichi could only think about how lucky he was that he had not contacted Umbrager, otherwise he would be a laughing stock or worst, get killed.

"Damn this, looks like I'll have to go back and continue to search f- what's this?"

Junichi picked up a written note.

"Junichi, I've switched the notes for our newest weapons with some of our old research documents regarding the projects we worked on when you were under my employment. I knew you have been sneaking into Bastion Cove. That blue eye of yours is too familiar to me. From Dr Kurosaki."

Junichi's temper hit the roof. Rippnig the note apart, he gave a scream of anger.

"That old witch! I'll deal with her. No wait... I have a better idea. If I recall correctly, she has a new assistant. Hidetate Yuka. I saw her on my last 'visit', seems very attached to the doctor. Let's see what happens when I take her out, Kurosaki..."

With that thought in mind, Junichi began laughing hysterically as he exited his secret hideout and prepared for his next move.

* * *

Ren laid down on the hospital bed, glumly looking at the ceiling. He had a nasty cut on his forehead, along with a fractured rib, a sprained ankle and a dislocated elbow. The doctor said he was lucky to have only suffered this much injuries, especially after they saw pictures of the crash.

"Happy now? Thanks to you, everyone got so worried that they did not even have a proper meal for two days straight and spend most of their time outside your ward until you woke up. We also lost an aircraft. Half of the Storm Sparrow you flew is now left in pieces, literally."

"I'm sorry, Cap. I just... I just want to make a point."

"Point? What point? It's about Yuka, is it?"

Ashamed, Ren looked away, realizing that his captain knew what he felt about Yuka. Captain Iketani, who was angry for a moment, relented and gave a sigh.

"Just get well soon. Raptor Team works well with one more man, not one less."

* * *

"Ren's... jealous of me? Why? And what's all this things he wrote about me?"

Yuka had just discovered the reason why Ren was so cold towards her and why he kept having negative things to say about her. And she had just read Ren's blog, seeing all the horrible things he had wrote about her

"He's been blogging his dislike of you for the past two days, after your test results were revealed. Before you came, the only person who beat him in scoring was Jake, but only in the Rescue Test, although his Combat Test showed that he had more accuracy than Ren. When he found out how you got selected for the Three Tests, he got even more upset."

"You could say that he felt his position as the best in the team being threatened. Or you could say his pride. He worked really hard to get selected for the Three Tests, and when he failed his Rescue test, he kept on practising until when he retook the test, he finally passed it," Kohaku added to Ayane's explanation.

"I don't get it. I mean... He could have said something."

"He had been getting a bad rep ever since he added those comments to his blog. When you showed up... he tried to remain silent, but ended up letting everyone see his displeasure."

"What about the rest of the base personnel? All of them started whispering to each other when you brought me around the base this morning. I just pretended not to notice."

"Er...well... You see, Ren is rather well-liked by many people in Bastion Cove, so they'll, you know, take his... side," Dean nervously said.

Yuka silently thought for a while, then she got up and left the room.

"Yuka? Where are you going?" Toru asked. Yuka did not reply, instead making her way down the corridor, leaving him and Ayane staring at each other.

"Probably to confront Ren. Dean, we better go and make sure nothing stupid happens," Jake said as he got up from his seat. Dean followed him as he left the room after Yuka.

* * *

Ren stared out towards the sea. It took some begging for the doctors to finally allow him to walk around the base. Silently, he decided to return to base before the doctors discovered that he had sneaked out onto the beach of Bastion Cove. Turning around, he had a shock to see Yuka standing before him, a letter in her hand.

The two stare at each other, with the sun setting at the horizon. Jake and Dean appeared on top of the stairs leading to the beach, but did not come down.

"Yuka," Ren broke the speech stalemate.

"I know why you did that stupid stunt on Birdon. I also know why you're angry with me. Honestly speaking, I'm so angry with this whole fiasco that I just want to punch you myself. Why do you think I'm still in GCI uniform?"

"Because... you are not officially... a member of Raptor Team?"

"Exactly! So what's your problem? So what if I got in here through string-pulling? I have not been officially inducted into your team yet so you don't have to be so petty about it. I'll let you know this- I only skipped the selection test, I still had to take those Three Tests! Yet I'm still in this uniform instead of the ones you're wearing."

Yuka breathed for a while, then continued.

"I saw what you wrote on that blog. I'm a free-loader, I do favors to skip the Selection Test, my results for the Three Tests were editted. I don't know what to say anymore. Everyone in base are now whispering about me behind my back because of you... Since you want it that way, fine."

Ren silently stared at Yuka, who was now looking rather pissed off. Yuka simply started taking off her uniform, scaring the guys.

"Wait! Yuka, this is public..."

Yuka dumped the uniform in front of Ren. Luckily, she was wearing a white t-shirt underneath, otherwise Jake and Dean would have probably gone mad at how to handle the whole thing without getting either one of them in trouble.

"Take this and dump it at where you see fit. I'm leaving."

With that, Yuka simply walked away, leaving Ren looking down at the ground. Ren clenched his fists, realizing his errors. He was a young adult, not a teenager or a child! Yet he wrote all those comments about her on his blog and turned the whole base against Yuka. Picking up Yuka's uniform, he tried to catch up, wanting to apologize...

Just in time to see the red dot of a laser sight aimed at Yuka's neck.

"Yuka, look out!"

Ren leapt at Yuka, shoving her to the ground, fallnig on top of her and dropping his clutch. A shot rang out, missing them both by inches. Alerted, Jake and Dean drew their Dual Shooters and began firing at the spot where the shot came from. Whoever the shooter was, he did not return fire, possibly because he was hit or was busy escaping. Dean and Jake then rushed to Yuka and Ren, helping them both up. The gun shots have triggered an alarm, with two dozen GCI soldiers rushing to the scene.

"Search the woods! The attacker opened fire from in there," Jake ordered. The soldiers immediately went into the woods after the shooter

"You guys all right?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, yeah, we're fine..."

"What the hell was that shot all about?"

"Not sure... i think whoever shot at us was aiming at Yuka. I saw the laser sight aimed at her."

Just then, one of the soldiers returned to them.

"Sir, we found this note."

"Dear Kurosaki, if you find this on your assistant's corpse, you should know that I don't like people taking my old job. Katsuima Junichi. So that bastard came back... Give this to Dr Kurosaki," Jake muttered as he gave the note back to the soldier.

"Yuka... put this back on, please."

Ren, not looking up, handed the uniform back to Yuka. Yuka stared at it, then at Ren, who had just placed his own life on the line to save her, even though he was injured.

"It's his way of apologizing," Jake whispered to Yuka, who quietly took back her uniform. She then looked up at Ren.

"I think... you owe me a handshake earlier," Yuka said as she held out her hand.

"Yeah... Aojima Ren, Raptor Team, at your service," Ren replied as he accepted her handshake, a small smile appearing on his face...

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Proflie: Birdon, Kemujira

Origins: Ultraman Taro

Kemujira are a kind of insect monster preyed on by Birdon, able to shoot webs and release some strange smoke. Birdon, a powerful bird-like prehistoric monster, is notorious for killing not one, but two Ultramen, namely Taro and Zoffy, proving itself to be a dangerous monster

* * *

**Chapter 3: Legend of the Snow Woman**

A village in the snowing mountains is plagued by strange attacks that leaves the victims frozen, a monster in the mountains and a mysterious young lady who appears to be a spirit known as the Yuki-onna. With trouble brewing around the corner, Ultraman Mebius chose the right moment to come visit Aegis, for she's going to need all the help she can get. Part 1 of a two-part story.


	3. Chapter 3: Legend of the Snow Woman

**Chapter 3: Legend of the Snow Woman**

_Many years ago, Land of Light_

"_Come on, Mebius, You can fly faster than this!"_

_An Ultraman with two horns, one on each side on his head, said to what appears to be a child version of Ultramen. This is Ultraman Taro, son of Father and Mother of Ultra. The child Ultraman is a young Mebius. Both were flying around the space area near the land of light_

"_Master Taro! You said you will be going easy on me!"_

"_I am going easy on you! Try to catch up!" Taro replied jovially, although he did started to slow down his flight speed._

_Both Ultras finally decided to return to the Land of Light after half a day of flight training. Mebius seemed excited about taro promising to teach him how to fight. Taro remembered watching the children practising in the __Colosseum and spotting Mebius among the group, telling his father about the potential he saw in him and being allowed to train him personally._

_Taro was snapped out of his thoughts when Mebius suddenly stopped and pointed at something in front of them._

"_Master Taro, what is that?"_

_A wormhole! Taro was surprised at its sudden appearance. Worried that some unknown creature might appear, he placed himself in front of Mebius, getting ready for anything._

_The wormhole suddenly disappeared, leaving Taro confused. What was that all about? At least nothing dangerous appeared. Taro was had justturned around when Mebius suddenly said that there was someone in front of them. Unbelieving, Taro turned back and saw that Mebius was right- a figure was floating at the location of the wormhole._

"_Mebius, speed back and inform my parents about this. I'll investigate."_

"_No need for that, Taro. We've seen the wormhole too. Many of the witnesses said something came out of it. It seems they were right."_

_Zoffy had appeared, along with another Ultra. Zoffy instructed the Ultra to bring Mebius back while he and Taro approached the motionless figure. What they found stunned them both._

_It was a female Ultra, blue and silver in colour, around Mebius' age or slightly younger. She was unconcious. Zoffy immediately sensed that this Ultra was not of their world. He and Taro stared at each other, before finally deciding to bring her back to the Space Garrison and see how they deal with this mysterious Ultra._

_Present Day_

"Taro? Taro!"

Taro snapped out of his thoughtswhen he heard Zoffy calling him. Turnnig around, he sees Zoffy walking towards him clearly agitated by something.

"Zoffy, what's happened? I've never seen you this-

"Mebius ran off to Earth! On his own! To visit Aegis! What if he accidently reveal her identity? We both know that Aegis was sent to Earth because she was being tar-"

"Sh! Not so loud! Have you forgotten that there are reports of unknown beings having infiltrated the Land of Light disguised as Ultras. Ultraman King believed that they are the same beings as the ones Aegis and us defeated years ago. Besides, I can guarantee you that Mebius will be careful not to reveal anything."

"Taro, the whole world knows how Mebius looked like in his human form!"

"Calm down, Zoffy! I'll head down to fetch him later. That kid's become very good at hiding from us recently."

Shaking his head, Zoffy walked off, grumbling about how he was going to give Mebius a 'special' treatment. Knowing that Zoffy won't do what he threatens since he himself has a soft spot for Mebius, Taro casually took off to space, slowly taking his time to travel to Earth to retrieve his apprentice.

* * *

"Argh, the snow! What's with the sudden blizzard?" Ren complained as he, along with Captain Iketani, Dean, Yuka, Kohaku and Jake (somehow they managed to squeeze in) drove down a road near a mountain range inside the Lander Wolf. Behind them was a GCI Armoured Vehicle driven by Captain Kimura, the leader of the GCI on Bastion Cove.

"It's still February, of course there's still some snow in certain areas, although this blizzard feels unnatural. Jake, pass me the two-way radio. Is it connected to Captain Kimura's vehicle? Good. Kimura, how are you guys doing back there?"

"My men are complaining about tthe temparature, Shintaro. What about your men?"

"Only one guy at the moment."

"Let me guess, Aojima, right?"

Laughter could be heard through the radio. Ren grunted in annoyance.

Jake had suddenly stepped down on the brakes, causing everyone to jerk front. Seing the Lander Wolf stopped, Kimura also quickly stepped on the brakes.

"What the hell, Jake? Why did you brake suddenly?" Dean asked, massaging his head after the sudden brake caused him to hit the window.

Jake did not reply. Instead, he and Kohaku unstrapped their seatbelts and got out of the vehicle. Everyone followed suit, stepping out into the freezing weather. Everyone gasped at what caused Jake to stop suddenly.

A young woman with long white hair laid in the middle of the road, wearing nothing but a white fur cloak around her. Kohaku went over to feel her pulse.

"She's still alive. We better get her into the vehicle, fast."

A suden, strange roar stopped everyone in their tracks. The, Dean pointed at something near the mountains behind them.

"Over there! A monster!"

Everyone turned. True enough, a large, white creature with a strange looking face was bellowing and waving its arms, firing blasts of cold air from its mouth. Captain Kimura and his men, who had exited their vehicle to see what was going on, began firing at the creature, although the distance between the humans and the monster meant that all their shots missed.

"Kimura, stop shooting and get out of here, quick!" Captain Iketani shouted at his friend as he and the others raced for the Lander Wolf. Captain Kimura quickly signalled for his men to retreat. Everyone got back into their vehicles and quickly raced off, leaving the monster behind in the mountains.

* * *

"Argh... I can't contact them. They must be in the mountains or something," Toru complained as he tried unsuccessfully to contact the rest of Raptor Team back in Bastion Cove.

"We have no choice but to wait for them to clear the mountains then," Ayane replied as she checked for any updates on the mysterious deaths happening around a village in Hokkaido, which, combined with sightings of monsters, had prompted GEAR Japan to launch an investigation, thus the reason why Captain Iketani had taken the others along with a squads of GCI soldiers to the region. Unfortunately, a sudden blizzard had forced them to land the transport plane they were on at a GEAR Japan Hokkaido Branch, making them continue on foot.

"Yeah, but I'm worried... SCAN just picked up a signal but the blizzard in that area made it impossible to identify what monster was showing up. Hell, it's still there," Toru said as he pointed at a blinking red spot on the screen.

"Oh c'mon, you worrywart. They survived worst then a blizzard. Remember the Rescue portion of the Three Tests where they had to find all test dummies in the forest with supplies that last only three days? Oh, a call... It's Cap!"

"Nice to hear you Ayane, just letting you know that we've reached the village. For some reason the blizzard is only on the mountains. We even found a lost woman and had a run-in with some unknown giant monster."

"SCAN indicates that the monster is still there. It appeared on the day the blizzard began. But SCAN has not been able to identify it. I would blame the blizzard, but I think it's because it's a new monster not recorded inside SCAN Datafiles."

"Never mind, try and do what you guys can. Captain Iketani out."

* * *

"We'll be setting up camp in that building. It's sturdy, has a garage big enough for both our vehicles and is not owned by anyone in the village, according to the police chief. It's also got a good view of the mountains and forest in front of the village," Captain Iketani said to everyone as they began unpacking their equipment. Sonar dishes, mortars and two way radios are brought into the building and set up accordingly.

The building was old but well built, with a lobby on the first floor, three rooms on the second and third floor and a roof with a metal fence around the edges.

Meanwhile, in the third floor of the building, which had been converted into a temporary first aid bay, Kohaku and Yuka watched over the mysterious white-haired girl, who was still unconcious. After a while, Kohaku left the room to help Jake set up his sniping perch on the roof, leaving Yuka alone with the girl.

Once she was certain no one is around, Yuka locked the room and, after hesitating for a bit, silently placed her hands on the girl, emitting a green light from them. After a while, the girl's eyes flickered and opened.

"What... where am I? Who are you?"

"Relax, miss, you're in safe hands, or should I address yopu as... Snowgon?"

The girl gasped, realizing that Yuka knew what she was.

"You... know who I am?"

"Yep, but I'll keep it a secret. I was afriad that if I started healing you and you awoke, you might threash the whole place. Luckily it didn't come to that."

Snowgon stared at Yuka, bewildered, until she finally sensed who she was.

"You're an Ultra."

"Yes, I am. My real name is Aegis. Now that we both know each other's secret, we're even, right? Anyway, what should I call you? Can't let anyone know that your'e a monster in human form."

Snowgon looked at her strange, then suddenly grabbed Yuka by her arms.

"Hey, Snowgon, what are you doing? Stop it, hey!"

Realizing that Snowgon was attempting to freeze her solid, Yuka shoved Snowgon away from her, then using her own abilities to shatter the ice encased around part of her arms

"Snowgon! Why? I'm trying to know you better!"

Instead of replying, Snowgon pulled the window opened and leapt through it! Landing on her feet, she quickly began running into the forest. Her escape is seen by Jake, who was on the rooftop with the Blitz and a mug of hot cocoa. Dropping the mug, he quickly took aim, but stopped when he realized that it was the girl they had found on the road ealier.

"Jake! Don't shoot her!" Yuka called out as she got noto the roof.

"I almost did! Luckily I recognized her. What is she doing, running away from us? What happened?"

"She's... a bit unstable. Attacked me just now, but let... her go this time... I... I..."

All of a sudden, Yuka felt her body going cold. She shivered, despite the thick layers of cloths and jackets she was wearing. Her vision blurred, and the last thing she saw before everything went black was Jake rushing to catch her as she fell.

* * *

Yuka stirred from her state of unconciousness, finding herself back in the medical bay. With her were Jake, Kohaku, Captain Iketani and an old man.

"Ah, you've awakened. You gave Jake a severe fright just now, although for some reason your body was unnaturally cold. Are you all right?" Kohaku asked as she took out another heating pad to give to Yuka.

"I'm fine, thanks."

"You were lucky the yuki-onna only gave you a slight freeze. Had it been a male, he would have become a soldi ice statue waiting for her to take back to her cave," the old man said.

"Er.. sorry?"

"Have you not heard of the story of the yuki-onna. She is a yokai that appears fully human, except with the ability to freeze anything she wants and control ice and snow. She is said to be very beautiful in appearance, but ruthless and evil."

"Aye, and yet sometimes she proved herself to be a force of good and behaves more human than us mortals in other stories, saving lives or finding a loving husband after sparing his life. But this yuki-onna we have here has been causing a blizzard in the area for the past few days. Normally, we would see her in the mountains or wandering around the village outskirts. Never once did she bother us until recently."

"You're saying that this yuki-onna is responsible for the blizzard in the mountains?"

"Yes. A few days ago, a strange monster began attacking the village, leaving ten of our villagers frozen in ice blocks. She then saw the yuki-onna begin creating the blizzard on the mountains right in front of our village. Please, follow me. I need to show you and your men something important," the old man said.

"Who is he?" Yuka asked as Captain Iketani followed the old man out, calling out for Captain Kimura to come with him.

"Oh, that's the village chief," Kohaku replied.

"If there's nothing else, I'll return to the roof," Jake said as he picked up the Blitz and left as well.

The village chief brought Captains Iketani and Kimura to the basement of the clinic where nine people could be seen frozen in ice completely. Captain Iketani could see from their eyes that they are still alive, but trapped and unable to free themselves.

"There were originally ten. The victims are still alive, but we have not been able to melt them out. One of them was killed when his brother made a rash attempt to shatter the ice. He ended up being shattered to pieces and we stopped any other attempts to rescue them from their imprisonment. That's why we called you in, hoping that your organization have the means to free them."

* * *

Ren and Dean made their way through the thick snow in the forest near the village with four GCI soldiers. Having been assigned to scout out the area, they had just received word from Kohaku that the girl they found on the road had awoken and escaped after attacking Yuka. One of the soldiers was holding a camera, constantly checking to make sure that the cold does not damage it.

"Maybe she's a wild girl, having lived far from civilization," Dean suggested.

"The villagers called her a yuki-onna. You've heard stories of them, right? They said we picked up a spirit."

"I'm more interested in the creature we saw earlier in the mountains."

"Sir, we've found tracks! Human tracks! They're heading towards the mountains!" One of the GCI soldiers called out.

"Good, let's follow them!"

Ren and Dean followed the tracks with the soliders but after a few secodns they stopped. The human footprints were slowly turning into gigantic moster footprints. Sensing danger, Dean indicated a retreat.

It was then did the monster of the mountains revealed itself. With a white body, three red eyes on its tengu-like face and a sharp spike on its left hand, this monster was a sight to behold.

"Holy... it looks even uglier up close!" Dean shouted as he and the others made a run for it. Ren stopped to get the camera from the soldier carrying it and took a quick picture before resuming his escape. Luckily, the monster decided not to pursue them, and the men escaped with their lives.

* * *

"So this is the monster? Looms like a tengu," Jake said as he helped to transmit the picture Ren had taken back to Bastion Cove. Luckily for them, the village's location and current weather status allowed for any connections. Soon, the monster's picture was displayed on the screens in the Ops Room of Raptor Team in Bastion Cove.

"I recognized that creature! It is Iceron, a Super Beast sent by Yapool to battle Ultraman Ace. It was defeated by Ace, who buried it in the mountains after hitting it with a Metallium Beam," Ayane explained to the rest of Raptor Team via radio.

"Buried alive? You mean Ace did not kill it?"

"Maybe it was revived or there was another Iceron."

"No, Mebius killed Yapool for good during his tenure on Earth. So someone must have revived it."

"Anyway, keep us updated, Toru, Ayane. Captain Iketani out."

"What do we do now, cap? A Super Beast is no ordinary monster."

"We have no choice. If Iceron decides to attack the village, we must fight it head on. That is our job, to protect those that need us."

Just then, Jake radioed in, sounding agitated.

"Cap! This Iceron monster, it's approaching the village!"

"Approaching the village? It must have pretended not to notice us so that it could follow us back to the village!" Ren said, a look of terror on his face as he realized the reason why he and the soldiers were able to get awawy from the Super Beast earlier.

"Kimura! Get your men to their battle stations! We cannot let the village be wrecked by Iceron!"

The villagers ran to the safety of the town hall and polcie station as Raptor Team, GCI soldiers and some polcie officers armed with rifles took up positions inside the temporary GEAR Base. As Iceron drew nearer, Jake and the two soldiers on the roof began firing on it, Jake trying to find a weak spot on Iceron while the other two soldiers fired their rocket launchers. All around the base, rockets, bullets and laser shots flew from the windows of the buildings towards Iceron, dealing quite some damage on it. However, it was not enough to slow Iceron down. Iceron's spike began to glow blue in color and it did a chopping moment with its hand, sending an arc of energy smashing into the building. The building held, but the impact threw some of the occupants off their feet. Jake and the two soldiers took the full brunt of the attack as the roof exploded.

"Jake!" Kohaku called out as she left her position to check on Jake. Her fears were unfounded when Jake and another soldier stumbled down the stairs, assisting the second soldier who was bleeding heavily from his head.

"Patch him up, I'll join the others," Jake said as he and the other soldier ran to the corridor to oin the assault. Meanwhile, Captain Iketani was conversing with Toru and Ayane through the radio.

"Are you able to see the whole thing through SCAN? What's Iceron's abilities?"

"With the blizzard only concentrated on the mountains, we're able to see the battle at the village. But Iceron only has an ice breath attack. I don't know when it had an energy slash attack."

"Maybe it did not use it when fighting with Ultraman Ace and Woo, or this is a new Iceron."

"All right, Captain Iketani out! Kimura, how many men are injured?"

"Two of my men and two police officers down! They've been carried to the third floor!"

Another energy arc hits the building, this time tearing off a few chunks. Iceron roars in delight as it prepared another attack. Meanwhile, Yuka, who had been taking shots at Iceron from the first floor using a machine-gun turret placed in position by a GCI soldier, noticed someone standing near Iceron.

"Hey, what's that?" Yuka asked, pointing the figure out. The Gci soldier helping her operate the turret strained his eyes to take a look.

"It look like a woman," he replied.

Yuka silently used her Ultra Sight to zoom in on the figure. It was Snowgon!

Wait, Snowgon is controlling Iceron? Yuka thought as she continued to fire on Iceron.

Snowgon glared at Iceron and then began transforming. Stretching her arms out, she seemed to grow in size until a white, reptilian creature with fur stood at where she was standing moments ago. Snowgon charged at Iceron, stunnnig everyone inthe buidling, especially Yuka. Iceron tried to fight ehr off, but Snowgon pulled it away from the village before performing a monkey flip that sent Iceron crashing into the forest.

"Is that Snowgon? What is she doing?" Jake asked in a worried tone now that there were two monsters to deal with.

"I don't know, but she seems to be protecting the village, forcing Iceron away from us like that," Dean observed.

Snowgon and Iceron went at each other for a few rounds before Iceron began using its new energy arc attack, foring Snowgon to constantly rolled around to avoid the hits. She then attempted to freeze Iceron using her own Ice Breath attack, but Iceron simply turned around and slashed her across her torso with its spikes. Snowgon roared in pain and stumbled back, only to get her foot stuck in a crevice! As Snowgon tried to get her foot free, Iceron took the opportunity to blast her twice with his Energy Arc! Snowgon was blasted free, but fell heavily to the ground, injured.

Unable to stand the sight of a suffering Snowgon, Yuka sneaked out the buidling and summoned her Shield Bracers before transformnig into Aegis! Aegis performed a flying kick on Iceron almost immediately, sending it crashing to the ground. Leaping onto Iceron, she began raining blows onto it before Iceron threw her off. Angered, Iceron began firing his ice breath attack at Aegis, but another attack stopped it. Both fighters looked up in surprise.

An Ultraman landed right beside Aegis. Like most of the other Ultras, he had the standard red and silver colours. However, he had a blue color timer shaped like a diamond and there was a strange device on his left wrist.

"Guys, is that..." Ren started to say when Kohaku cuts him off.

"Ultraman Mebius! He must be here to supprot Aegis!"

"Mebius, what are you doing here?" Aegis asked her comrade.

"Visiting you, of course! I wanted to see how you're adapting to life on Earth. I didn't expect you to be fighting a Super Beast, and is that Snowgon on the ground? What's going on?" Mebius asked.

Iceron got to its feet, roaring angrily. Aegis and Mebius quickly ended the conversation and rushed forward, grabbing hold of Iceron. As Iceron struggled to escape, Aegis grabbed hold of its nose, but it jerked its head back suddenly.

A loud crack could be heard from the battlefield. All three combatants stopped attacking each other and stared at Aegis, who was now holding the nose of Iceron in her hands. Iceron, disbelieving, touched its face. True enough, Aegis had broken its nose off!

Roaring in humiliation, Iceron ran away from both Ultras, leaving them both wondering what all that was all about.

"Did you defeat this Snowgon?" Mebius asked Aegis as he pointed at the still figure of Snowgon.

"Oh no, I forgot! Snowgon!" Aegis said worriedly as she rushed to Snowgon's side. Snowgon weakly tried to push her away before going unconcious and transforming back into her human form. Both Ultras looked at each other before they too transformed back into their human forms. Mebius, now in his human guise Mirai Hibino, was about to ask about Snowgon when Yuka snapped at him.

"Stop asking questions, oddball, and help me get her to my comrades first. I'll tell you everything later. And don't let them know who I am!"

The worried tone in her voice prompted Mirai to quickly assist her by supporting Snowgon's right side. Both Ultras slowly made their way back to the village, carrynig Snowgon between them.

* * *

"Yuka! You're back! And you've found the girl again? And who's that guy beside you?" Ren asked when Yuka and Mirai stumbled into the building with the unconcious Snowgon.

"You guys won't believe this- this girl, the supposed yuki-onna, is Snowgon!" Yuka said as she and Mirai put Snowgon down to the floor.

"And you're..." Dean turned to Mirai.

"Mirai Hibino, former member of Crew GUYS Japan."

"I remember you! You're Mebius!" Ren said, remembering what he had seen on television when he was younger during Mebius' tenure on Earth. At that time, a controversial reporter known for many false stories exposed Mirai's identity as Mebius, resulting in the NSA coming after Mirai.

Everone immediately began asking him questions, leaving Mirai and Yuka flustered and unsure of what to do. Jake finally saved them by suddenly giving a loud shout, silencing everyone.

"Ahem, everyone, look at the situation. We have a Super Beast running wild in the mountains and probably going to attack the village again, and we now have a monster and an Ultraman in human forms inside this building. How should we proceed from here?"

"Snowgon fought with Iceron just now, right? Maybe she's on our side," Dean said only to be cut off by Ren.

"She's a monster! We should let Mebius blast her to oblivion outside!" Ren argued

"She protected the village! You saw it yourself!" Kohaku shouted back. The ruckus began again, with many of the GCI soldiers on Ren's side while Yuka, Kohaku and Dean are on the other side. This time, Jake fired his Blitz into the ceiling. Everyone turned and stare at him as dust and small pieces of concrete dropped on his head and shoulders.

"Mebius, you're the Ultra here. Your decision."

"Oh, I... er... We should help Snowgon! I mean, well, I just arrived here, but Aegis did not attack Snowgon at all, right? We should wait and see. I think this Snowgon is friendly, after all," Mirai said, with a bit of stammering but giving a bright expression on his face.

Yuka tried not to laugh at Jake's expression. He probably thought that Mirai, being an Ultraman, would be a bit more serious in his speech.

"What! You're an Ultraman! That's a monster that ripped Jack into pieces once..."

"Enough, Ren! I'm the Captain here, and Mirai over there is Ultraman Mebius. Both of us seemed to agree that Snowgon is not a threat to us so you better back down, now!" captain Iketani ordered, a hint of anger in his voice.

"Yuka, Jake, you two watch over Snowgon with Mr Hibino. The rest of you, back to your stations."

"That was a tough situation," Mirai said once everyone has left.

"Ren's an angry man. Just shoots his mouth off anything that pisses him off. But he's a good guy," Jake replied.

"C'mon, we better bring Snowgon to the third floor. It's getting late. Jake, you stay guard on the staircase. I trust Ren not to come up but I'm not sure about the other soldiers," Yuka said. The sniper nodded and followed Yuka and Mirai up, with Yuka and Mirai holding on to Snowgon. He then sat down on the top of the stairs, making sure that no one comes upstairs to cause any trouble. However, for some reason, he could not shake off the fact that Mirai and Yuka seemed to get along well with each other despite that fact that they had just met today.

Maybe they knew each other when Mirai came to Earth as Mebius, he thought. Not only that, but he noticed that he was unable to contact Yuka or see her anywhere whenever Aegis appeared...

Okay, that was a dumb thought, it was just coincidence, Jake thought to himself. He began focusing on the staircase, using his guard assignment to distract him from other thoughts...

Meanwhile, in the mountains, more pairs of eyes watched the village with sinister intent in them...

(to be continued)

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Proflie: Snowgon

Origins: Return of Ultraman

Snowgon was an alien creature used by Alien Black in attacking Earth, freezing several people solid and even ripping Ultraman Jack apart at one point. Jack's Ultra Bracelet revives him, allowing Jack to finish off Snowgon. The Snowgon in this chapter seems protective towards the village for some reason...

Profile: Iceron

Origins: Ultraman Ace

A Super Beast created by Yapool, it attacked in the snowy mountains of Japan. During its rmaapge, a young boy began calling out for his deceased father, who transforms into the yeti/ghost-like monster Woo. Although Iceron was able to knock Woo out, Ultraman Ace appeared and managed to defeat it, burying Iceron alive. This chapter's Iceron seems newer and has gained a new ability...

Profile: Mebius

Origins: Ultraman Mebius

A young Ultra Warrior who was assigned to protect Earth, he is the tenth Ultra Brother as well as a former member of Crew GUYS Japan. His human form is Mirai Hibino and he transforms using the Mebius Brace.

_Ultraman Mebius is the 17__th__ series and the 40__th__ Anniversary Production of the Ultra Series. It aired in Japan from 2006 to 2007, with 50 episodes in all, and takes place in the original timeline._

* * *

**Chapter 4: Great Battle in the Snowy Mountains**

Snowgon is left badly injured by Iceron. As Toru and Ayane arrived with reinforcements, Yuka and Mirai learns the reason why Snowgon was protecting the village. Iceron returns, this time with a Dorako and a Pandon. A climatic battle is about to begin at the outskirts of a snowy village. Part 2 of a two-part story.


	4. Chapter 4: Battle on the Snowy Mountains

**Chapter 4: Battle on the Snowy Mountains**

_Previously:_

_Raptor Team finds an unconcious woman on their way to a village in Hokkaido to investigate strange cases of people being frozen into ice statues. Through a series of events, the woman is revealed to be the alien creature Snowgon. Known to be an enemy of Ultraman Jack in the past, why is Snowgon protecting the village and yet suddenly attacking Yuka?_

Three grey Chinook helicopters bearing the symbol of GEAR Japan landed outside the village where Yuka and the others are in. GCI soldiers poured out of the Chinooks as Ayane stepped out from the first Chinook. Captain Iketani and the rest of Raptor Team came to greet her.

"The blizzard's all cleared so SCAN was able to pick up the location of Iceron. We also picked up three other monsters in the region, namely Snowgon, a Dorako and a Pandon. The Director decided to send in more reinforcements to counter these threats."

"Well, we've kinda got our own reinforcements last night. Secret reinforcements," Captain Iketani replied to Ayane as he pointed her towards the third floor.

"Where's Toru?" Ren asked.

"Right here," a familiar voice responded as Toru emerged from the Chinoook Ayane was on, wheeling himself down the ramp towards his team-mates.

"Wait... Toru? You..." Yuka, a surprised look on her face, asked. All this while she had not realize that Toru was in a wheelchair.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot to tell you about my disability."

"Toru lost the use of his legs in an accident shortly after joining Raptor Team. He was caught in a hit-and-run accident and the injuries he suffered left him crippled," Jake explained.

"That's horrible!"

"Nah, I'm all right now. Got used to this wheelchair anyways. Now, before we get to business, you might want to change into this, Yuka," Toru said as he presented a flat parcel to Yuka.

Yuka opened it, only to find a neatly folded uniform, dark green and black in colour with the dinosaur head logo of Raptor Team on it along with her nametag.

"That's the official uniform of Raptor Team, Yuka. As of now, you're permanently part of our group. And here's your Dual Shooter. Jake will guide you on how to use its functions at a later date," Captain Iketani said. Grinning like a child receiving a Christmas gift, Yuka hurriedly went back to the building they were holed up in to change.

* * *

"How is Snowgon?" Jake asked as he, Yuka and Kohaku entered the room where Mirai was watching over Snowgon.

"She woke up, but then fell asleep again. According to the way Yuka explained her attack, it seems that she has a freezing touch apart from her usual abilities."

"No wonder the villagers mistook her for a yuki-onna," Kohaku said as she sat down beside Snowgon. It was then Snowgon started to stir.

"What... where am I?"

"Oh, you're awake!" Kohaku said as she knelt beside Snowgon.

"Hey, Snowgon, I don't mean to be rude but why did you attack me yesterday?"

"Attack? Oh, right... i remember... I didn't mean to..."

"You can apologize to her later, personally. Although I can't really think of any reason why you tried to freeze her solid in the first place."

"I didn't mean to do it! Something came over me... I just blacked out all of a sudden and when I came to I was freezing her arm! I panicked and escaped..."

Jake and Kohaku looked at each other, wondering whether Snowgon was telling the truth. Yuka, however, simply gave Snowgon a friendly smile, something which causes Snowgon to blush slightly.

"So, Snowgon, when did you start protecting the village?"

"I... it's a long story..."

"We're all interested, please, do tell," Mirai said gently. Jake and Yuka also sat down to listen. Snowgon sighed and began her tale.

* * *

_(Flashback) Three months ago_

_Snowgon clutched her leg in pain as she tried to hide from a two-headed monster with bird-like heads as it hunts for her in the mountains. Where it came from, she did not know, but she was frightened and injured, having been beaten by it when she assumed her true form to fight it._

_Snowgon was startled by footsteps walking towards her. She turned around, only to find a man with blond hair and different-coloured eyes standing in front of her. Before she could react, she felt someone hit her on the back of her head. Snowgon's vision fade to black..._

"_Miss, miss, are you all right?"_

_Snowgon could heaer a child talking to her. She opened her eyes slowly, still recovering from the knockout blow as well as her leg injury. In front of her were two children and an adult was in a house lying on a sofa with a blanket over her._

"_Miss, how did you injure your leg? Did you fell?"_

"_I... I'm fine, thanks. How... did you find me?"_

"_My kids here found you when they sneaked into the forest to play and called me over to help," the man said, his tone friendly._

"_Papa, papa, the village chief wants to see you," one of the children said, tugging at the man's pants._

"_All right, all right, both of you come with me. Miss, you stay here and get some rest,"the man said as he and his kids left the house. Snowgon waited for them to leave, before silently getting up, opening the window and sneaking out._

_I'm a monster, I can't stay in human society, Snowgon thought as she slowly made her way towards the forest, but stoped when she heard the man calling out for her._

"_I don't know, chief! She was right here!"the man exclaimed, his tone filled with surprise._

"_You must have picked up a yuki-onna, Wataru," an older voice was heard saying._

"_Dammit, I even went to get medication for her leg..."_

_Snowgon wanted to go back to the house, but ultimately choose to go to the forest._

_For the next few days, she silently observed the villagers. They were helpful and kind to each other, and as she watched the children play with each other in the snow, a sense of belonging swell within her. For unknown reasons, she found herself loving this village. It was peaceful and quiet, unlike human cities. But then she remembered the two headed monster that had attacked her, and realized that the village was in danger of the monster attacking it. Apart from the two-headed monster, she also remembered sensing the presence of two other monsters around..._

* * *

"And that's how I choose to protect the village," Snowgon finished her tale.

"Because you felt an attraction to this village?" Jake asked.

"Honestly speaking, I also regard this village as part of my territory, and I have to make sure no other monsters invade my home. But honestly speaking, I can't seem to remember a lot of things, like why I'm on your planet, and why I keep having blackouts."

Everyone nodded in understanding.

"Okay. I need to help Yuka get used to the Dual Shooter anyway. I think I'll drag Ren along. Wanna come along Kohaku?"

"Yeah, sure. Why not?"

"Actually, I'm a bit hungry at the moment," Mirai admitted as his stomach began growling.

"There's soup and porridge at the lobby, you can join us for breakfast. There's four guards up here to keep an eye on you, Snowgon. Don't worry, they're friendly," Kohaku said to Snowgon as the three of them got up and left the room.

"Wait, I want to ask something. I heard that villagers have been turning up frozen, and that since I attacked you all of a sudden without knowing... did I... attack them too?"

The four of them stared at Snowgon, then looked at each other uncomfortably.

* * *

"She's lying," Ren said as snow flew off the snowman.

Yuka was practicing using the Dual Shooter, with Jake helping her get used to the recoil. Jake, Kohaku and Ren had built ten snowmen as targets but clearly the sniper and medic could not resist making giving the snowmen some silly items- one had a top hat Ren found in a ruined house and another had an angry face on it made with stones. A third had carrots for its eyes and nose.

"I don't know, but she sounded sincere to me," Kohaku said.

"That's a monster, you guys. She can't be trusted."

"C'mon Ren, why so prejudiced against monsters? Not all of them are out to destroy the world," Yuka said nonchalantly. Ren was about to say something in anger but Jake shot him a warning glare, causing him to keep quiet for the rest of the shooting session.

Aiming carefully, Yuka fired another shot at one of the snowmen, the laser taking a chunk of snow of its head. Jake then signalled for her to stop.

"Looks like you're getting the hang of it, Yuka. Wanna try the 'big one'?"

"What big one?"

"Oh, you're gonna love it. Turn the front of the Dual Shooter so that the bigger barrel is on top," Jake explained as he twisted the front of his Dual Shooter so that the larger barrel, which is usually below the smaller barrel, is now on top. Yuka does the same, but her thoughts began drifting back to Snowgon's words.

"Now, press this button and take aim... Hold down the trigger... Let it char-HOLY CRAP GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

Both men dived to the ground as Yuka released the trigger of her Dual Shooter prematurely, sending a large red ball of energy flying past their heads and into one of the snowmen. The blast obiliterated all the snowmen and left a crater on the ground.

"Ah! I'm sorry! Are you guys okay? Ren? Jake?"

Both men got up from their positions, their backs completely covered in snow, mud and pieces of wood. Ren spat out some snow before glaring at Yuka along with Jake.

"Er... Oops..." Yuka stammered as she gave them an innocent grin. Meanwhile, Kohaku simply rolled around the ground, laughing her head off.

* * *

The four GCI soldiers slacked around outside Snowgon's room, wondering why they had been called to keep an eye on her.

"Why do we have to watch over a monster? I mean, she can take care of herself better than us."

"She attacked a member of Raptor Team yesterday, escaped, yet returned to protect the village from Iceron. Strange, don't you think?"

"Split personality?"

Meanwhile, inside the room, Snowgon quietly stared outside the window, her eyes showing worry. Yuka had revealed that there were ten villagers who had been frozen into ice statues, one of whom had died. Even though she did not say anything else, Snowgon knew that it was her fault, since she's the only one who could freeze people into ice statues. Iceron only just appeared yesterday. Before that, she sensed that Iceron was in a slumber.

All of a sudden, Snowgon shuddered and collapsed to her knees, before getting back up. Her face was now a blank expression, just as it had been when she attacked Yuka in the middle of their conversation. Eerily, she walked towards the door, her hands glowing blue.

* * *

Yuka, Kohaku, Ren and Jake were walking back to the village when shouts could be heard. Sensing trouble, the three of them rushed back to the village only to find several GCI soldiers surrounding Snowgon and pointing their weapons at her.

"That expression! She was like that when she attacked me yesterday!" Yuka exclaimed as they drew near.

Captain Kimura noticed them approaching and beckoned to them.

"What's the damage Kimura?" Ren asked.

"The four soldiers guarding her are frozen solid, similar to the villagers. She just froze another two soldiers that tried to stop her. We're waiting for Captain Iketani's signal."

"Snowgon! What are you doing? Why are you attacking?" Yuka shouted at Snowgon, who turned around and began walking towards her.

"Dammit, she's not responding!" Ren said. By then, the rest of Raptor Team had joined the group. Yuka tried to get through to Snowgon.

"Snowgon, please! You said to us earlier that you wanted to protect this village because you felt attracted to it! You saw the kindness of the villagers and the peacefulness of the area! Why are you attacking now? C'mon, Snowgon! Snap out of it!"

"Stop talking to it, Yuka! I told you that thing is a monster! It won't care about humans!" Ren shouted as he took aim at Snowgon. Dean and Kohaku tried to stop him, grappling with him.

Snowgon began to hesitate, and to everyone's shock, a tear fell from her eyes!

"Please... stop me..." Snowgon forcefully said as she got nearer to Yuka, almost about to give her the touch that froze her victims into ice statues

A shot rang out as a laser bolt hits Snwogon at the back of her neck. Snowgon fell to the ground, motionless. Everyone was stunned, then turned to look at Ren.

"I didn't even fire a shot! Don't look at me like that!"

"I did."

Everyone turned to stare at Mirai, his Mebium Brace showing on his left wrist, as he walked towards Snowgon, bent down, and pulled something out from the back of Snowgon's neck. Everyone walked forward to take a look at what it was. In Mirai's hands was a strange, metal device.

"This is a Verach Seijin's mind control device. It is unique in a way that it allows the victim to retain their free will until the user needs them under his control. Once they had done what the user wants them to do, the device is deactivated until it is needed again."

"The Verach Seijin?"

"A race of aliens made up of darkness and shadows. It seems that they are targetting Earth, seeing how Snowgon here fell victim to their mind control device. I'm honestly surprised that Snowgon was able to fight off some of the control. These devices are very powerful."

A sudden blast caused everyone to turn around. The sight that behold them sent the soldiers into a panic- a Dorako and a Pandon was storming down the mountainside, approaching the village. Both are being led by Iceron.

"Get the frozen soldiers into the basement of the town hall, with the other victims! The rest of you, into your positions, now!" Captain Kimura ordered. Despite their fear, the soldiers complied and quickly moved into position.

"Raptor Team! Fall back to the building and take up positions!" Captain Iketani shouted at his team. Everyone rushed into the building, except for Yuka, who helped Mirai moved the unconscious Snowgon to a safe place inside a small hut. Jake noticed them entering, but Pandon began firing fireballs all over the place as mortar and rockets hit its body. Dorako simply took to the air while Iceron stayed behind and simply watch.

"Your friends' weapons won't be enough to defeat them all at once. I'll take care of Dorako, you take out Pandon," Mirai said as his Mebium Brace appeared on his left wrist. Yuka nodded, summoning her own Shield Bracers. Both of them transformed into their respective Ultra forms.

"Look, Jake! Over there! Mebius!" Ayane and Toru said excitedly, ignorant of one of Pandon's fireballs missing their hiding place by inches. Jake, covered in soot and dirt, looked up, only to see Mebius take off after Dorako while Aegis appeared next to Pandon, spun it around so that both heads are facing her before grabbing them both and knocking them together. The impact left Pandon dazed as it spun around on its right foot.

"Ha, two heads aren't always better than one," Dean said from the third level of the building, where he was holed up with Kohaku, Ren and Captain Iketani. Meanwhile, GCI soldiers cleared the battlefield to prevent any of the two giants from accidently stepping on them.

* * *

_"You will serve the Verach in their invasion of Earth, whether you want to or not."_

_"No, I won't be a weapon like my sister!"_

_"Foolish girl, no one defies Lord Darkaizer."_

_"Do you not wish to avenge your sister, who was so brutally killed by Ultraman Jack on Earth?"_

_"She was tricked... I will not let myself suffer the same fate as my sister! Let go of me!"_

_"You do not have a choice..."_

Snowgon's eyes opened. She was in a hut, with the sounds of battle outside. She took a while to gather her senses but then she sensed something strange, like something was missing. Slowly, she crept out of the hut, only to see Aegis delivering a few punches and kicks to Pandon. She then noticed Iceron simply standing there, watching. Her eyes narrowed.

She remembered everything now. How she was forcefully kidnapped from her home planet. How she ended up with a strange device attached to her. When she felt her neck, she noticed that it was gone. She then remembered how this Verach Seijin would manipulate her into freezing any humans that come near her, despite her attempts to resist, only to forget everything all of a sudden.

She wanted to help out in the battle, but there was something she needed to do first.

* * *

Mebius finally caught up with Dorako, but Dorako suddenly turned around and flew past him, slashing him with its hooks along the way. As Mebius reacted to the attack, Dorako did a U-turn and repeated the attack twice. As it swung around for a fourth attack, Mebius was ready. Charging up energy into his fist, Mebius struck Dorako in its face as it neared him. The attack sent Dorako falling to the ground, the impact sending dirt and snow flying into the air. Deciding to finish the fight, Mebius transforms into his Burning Brave Mode, landed, ran a few steps and leapt high into the air. As he descended, he began spinning rapidly as his feet became engulfed in fire.

"That's the move he used on Reflect Seijin! Damn, we should have brought a video camera with us!" Toru exclaimed.

"We're caught in a middle of a monster brawl and all you can think of is taking a video?" Ayane asked, her tone filled with disbelief.

Caught like a rat, Dorako was unable to get up in time, and Mebius smashed into it, destroying Dorako.

Meanwhile, Aegis was sent flying backwards by Pandon's fireball attacks. She managed to roll out of the way from another barrage before running towards Pandon with both her arms stretched behind her back, like a ninja in movies and cartoons. As she does so, both her arms began glowing She ran towards Pandon, performnig a somersault to avoid Pandon's fireball barrage before landing and doing another one, this time vaulting over Pandon as she performed chopping actions with both her hands, sending two energy arcs out of her arms which hits both the necks of Pandon. She then landed gracefully behind Pandon as both its heads slowly fell from their individual necks.

"Damn, they both defeated their opponents! Now only Iceron is left!" Ren cheered.

"No, Iceron was trying to wear them both out. His plan's succeeded. Look," Captain Iketani said as he pointed at Mebius. True enough, Mebius' Color Timer was starting to blink. Aegis' Color Timer was not blinking, but it was obvious that she was getting worn out as well. Both Ultras rushed at Iceron, who simply does its strange energy arc attack, sending them both falling to the ground. It then fired one after another, with Mebius and Aegis unable to deflect the energy arcs. Both Ultras are left strugglnig to get up, with Aegis' Color Timer now blinking too.

Suddenly, a familiar roar distracted Iceron, who turned around only to see Snowgon charging at it. Unable to react in time, Iceron was tackled to the ground by Snowgon, who then picked it up to rain a few punches and kicks on it.

"Snowgon! She's back!" Kohaku said happily.

"What the hell is with her coming back? She think's Iceron's stealing her kill?" Ren asked in a hostile manner.

Just then, Captain Kimura appeared. He quickly joined them.

"Iketani, the frozen victims... they've been freed!"

"Freed? That's great news! How did it happen?"

"The villagers said that the yuki-onna unfroze them. My men said it was Snowgon who came for them and thawed them out. Apparently she kept apologizing."

"See, Ren, not all monsters are as evil as you make them to be," Dean said to Ren, who remained silent, a stunned expression on his face.

Snowgon finally stopped pounding on Iceron, grabbing its face instead. With a mighty roar, she ripped the tengu-like mask face off Iceron! Iceron howled in pain as it thrashed around the snow. This gave both Ultras a chance to recover. Mebius and Aegis stood up, looked at each other and nodded before combining their beam attacks on Iceron. The hapless Super Beast was blown into pieces by the strangth of the combined beam.

Somewhere up the mountains, the blonde man with two different eye colors, Katsuima Junichi, and a hooded figure watched the battle end before leaving the area.

"Now that we have the information we need, it is time you begin your mission, Junichi," the hooded figure said.

"Ha, leave it to me," Junichi replied, a confident look on his face.

* * *

"Well, the villagers sure are clingy," Mirai said as he prepared to leave Earth. Taro had sent a message to inform him that he will be waiting near the Moon, and it seems that he doesn't sound very happy about it.

"You'll get use to it if you come to Earth more often," Yuka replied as her friend transformed into his true form once again and took off, with the villagers all waving at him.

"Hey, Yuka! We'll be taking Snowgon with us on one of the Chinooks! You help Jake pack all the stuff back into the Lander Wolf, okay?" Captain Iketani asked. Apparently, everyone was going to return in their Chinooks except Jake, who was going to drive back to base in the Lander Wolf. Snowgon had insisted on taking an aerial vehicle, and Ren, surprisingly, had personally guided her into the Chinook he, Dean and Toru will be taking.

"Why, sure! No problem!" She replied, full of enthusiasm.

After an hour of packing, and saying goodbye to the villagers, Jake and Yuka finally left the village, with the Chinooks speeding off in front of them.

As Jake carefully navigated the mountain road, Yuka tried to start up a conversation with him, but the talkative, soft-spoken sniper was unusually quiet. It was only when they were halfway back to base did he finally break the silence.

"Yuka, I have a question to ask, if you don't mind."

"What is it?"

Jake took a deep breath, then closed his eyes before opening them again.

"Never mind, I'll leave it for now," he said before turning back to focus his attention on the road. Although, in his mind, he had really wanted to ask the question:

"Are you Aegis?"

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Profile: Dorako

Origins: Ultraman (1966)

A monster with one hook hand and one clawed hand, it seems to resemble a grasshopper. The first recorded Dorako appeared in 1966 where it was killed by a Red King during a fight with another monster known as Girass somewhere in the mountains

Profile: Pandon

Origins: Ultraseven

This two-headed bird-like monster was used by Ghoth Seijin in their attempt to invade Earth and was the final monster to be fought by Ultraseven during his time on Earth. After defeating it, Pandon was revived as Reconstructed Pandon, only to fall to the might of Ultraseven once again.

* * *

**Chapter 5: The Garden**

Jake is beginning to suspect Yuka is Aegis, almost asking her about it. How will the whole thing turn out? Also, Dr Kurosaki reveals an island near Bastion Cove where non-hostile monsters will be brought to, known as The Garden. While Snowgon, its first resident, adapts to life in The Garden, a hostile monster suddenly appears from the ocean and attacks her new home, courtesy of Katsuima Junichi using a summoning device given to him by the hooded figure, whose identity is about to be revealed by Verach Seijin Umbrager


	5. Chapter 5: The Garden

**Thanks to a hard disk error combined with lack of ideas, I had to stop for a while, estimating that I might only be able to continue in December, but my cousin fixed the whole hard disk problem and I got some new ideas from recent real-world events for future chapters, so here's the long-delayed Chapter 5**

* * *

**Chapter 5: The Garden**

"Our jets are what?"

Everyone surrounded Captain Iketani in the Ops Room, making him extremely uncomfortable. The Scientific Research, Development and Investigation Division (SRDID) had decided to modify the remaining fighters, including creating a new fighter for the team. Unfortunately, it meant that the team was to be grounded for a month. Clearly, Iketani had decided not to tell his men about it until, one day before completion, Eleking suddenly appeared and began wrecking havoc

"Don't look at me like that! I did not want to make you guys feel upset!" Captain Iketani said as his men close in on him.

"Eleking's just showed up in Osaka, so yeah, we're _very_ upset," Dean said.

"Well, we still have the Lander Wolf, and thanks to Toru, we now have a new weapon as well!" Captain Iketani replied as he gestured for the wheelchair-bound genius to explain the new weapon.

"This is the Pulse Launcher," Toru said as he brought up a diagram and picture of a large bazooka-like weapon that seems to resemble a tank gun.

"For the past two weeks, Dean and I have been discussing about creating a more effective weapon at knocking down large monsters, and this was the result. Unfortunately, the amount of energy required to operate the Pulse Launcer is so high, we had to create another vehicle to acomodate its power. Guys, let me introduce you all to the Lander Rhino!"

An image of an armoured van appear on screen. It had laser guns and two missiles on its roof and its front is heavily protected, clearly meant for ramming.

"The Lander Rhino's equipped with a huge power supply for the Pulse Launcher, which means the Pulse Launcher is part of this new combat vehicle."

"Well, let's not waste anymore time! Let's go!"

Everyone rushed for the lift. Captain Iketani was about to follow them, but suddenly stopped.

"You guys go ahead, I think I'll sit this one out," he called out. The others gave him a thumbs-up sign as the door of the lift closed. Iketani watched the lift go down before sitting down, clutching his leg in pain.

"Captain? What's wrong?" Ayane asked as she and Toru came over to investigate.

"I'm afraid my flying days are limited," Iketani replied as he pulled down his uniform's pants, revealing a bandaged up right knee.

"Captain... When did this happen?"

"Remember the explosion at Shooting Bay 2 two weeks ago? Someone got injured while test-firing the new weapon? That... was me."

"What? Why didn't you tell us?"

"Like I said, I don't want any of you guys to get worried. I'm still combat fit, but the doctor has banned me from flying," Iketani explained, a small smile on his face.

The operators looked at each other, clearly worried about their captain's current condition.

* * *

"How's things back there?" Jake asked through the radio. He, Yuka and Dean were in the Lander Wolf while Ren and Kohaku were in the Lander Rhino. Both vehicles were speeding towards the city where Eleking was busy smashing its way through.

Both vehicles stopped within shooting range as the drivers aimed their individual vehicle weapons at Eleking. Dean and Jake got out to assist Ren in setting up the Pulse Launcher, which turns out to be more heavier than it looks. The Pulse Launcher was attached by wires and cables to a machinery that took up half the back of the Rhino, and was surprisingly easy to handle despite its weight and bulkiness.

"All right, it's set up! Switch it on, Dean!" Ren called out as he steadied the Pulse Launcher on his shoulders. Jake took the Blitz Sniper out from the weapon compartment of the Lander Wolf, which also holds a pair of automatic laser rifles, and took aim at Eleking.

"Ayane, any info you can give us about Eleking?" Kohaku asked as she switched on her helmet radio.

"Well, be careful of its tail. According to these files, it kills its opponents by constricting them with its tail and channelling electricity through them. Try to hit the horns, they seem to be its weakness."

"Roger that! Everyone heard that?"

"You bet," Ren replied as he took aim at Eleking's right horn and fired the Pulse Launcher. A huge bolt of energy burst from the muzzle of the Pulse launcher, the recoil sent him skidding back a bit, but he managed to maintain his posture. Jake fired his Blitz at the left horn as Yuka and Kohaku fired the weapons of the Wolf and Rhino as well. Eleking screeched in pain as both its horns are destroyed by that attack. It fell to the ground, thrashing in pain as the rest of Raptor Team bombarded it with their weapons. Unable to take much more damage, Eleking finally stopped moving.

* * *

"I can't believe we actually did it! We managed to defeat a powerful monster on our own!" Ren loudly announced as he stood on the table in the Ops Room.

"For a twenty-three year old man, you sure act like a kid," Kohaku replied as she and Dean pulled him off the table.

"I'm 25, you idiot!"

"Hard to imagine how Kohaku fell in love with Ren," Ayane whispered to Yuka.

"What? Wait... I thought Jake and Kohaku..."

"They're just close friends. Kohaku actually met Jake before he got transferred here, when Jake was still a GCI grunt in GEAR SEA. She and Ren had already been dating at that time," Ayane replied.

"Speaking of which, where's Jake?" Yuka asked.

"I think he went down to check on the Eleking's corpse," Ayane replied.

* * *

"I suspected that much," Jake said to Dr Kurosaki as the two of them watched scientists and maintenance crews working out on how to clear Eleking's corpse as well as gain more information about the monster.

When they returned from the fight, Jake had immediately accessed Eleking's data on SCAN, only to find that the original Eleking was much more powerful than the one they had just killed. Suspecting something amiss, he had gone down to the SRDID building to check Eleking's corpse, which had been brought into the Warehouse, a hangar-like building beside the SRDID's building large enough to store 2 monster corpses. True enough, there were other injuries on Eleking apart from the ones they had inflicted.

"It appears that Eleking was attacked sometime before you and your colleagues engaged it in battle. According to these wounds, it will seem that Eleking was attacked from the air by something rather fast," Dr Kurosaki said as she gestured to a series of gashes and slash wounds on Eleking's back.

"Not just that, but I noticed that the horns were a bit crooked when we fought it, and how the whole fight was too easy. It's almost like the Eleking was already dying when we found it," Jake replied.

"Jake! There you are," Yuka called out as she entered the Warehouse.

"Oh, Yuka, what're you doing here?"

"Looking for you, obviously."

"Hahaha, how's life with Raptor Team, Yuka?" Dr Kurosaki asked as she bent down to inspect Eleking's broken horn.

"It's really great. Good team mates, exciting battles, and we even made friends with a monster! Speaking of which, where's Snowgon? I haven't seen her for days."

"Ah, Snowgon, yes? She's on the Garden."

"The Garden?" Both Jake and Yuka asked in unison.

"Come with me," Dr Kurosaki said as she got up from studying the Eleking and headed out of the building. Confused, the two of them followed her to her office, in the SRDID building.

* * *

"Damn you, making me come out at night when I was preparing a new plan of attack," Junichi complained as he met with the hooded figure.

"I have been scouting around GEAR's Headquarters in Bastion Cove, and I have a mission for you. Trust me, it's better than having Umbrager breathing down your neck everytime he assigns something to you."

"True enough, true enough. So what's your plan?"

"It would seem that GEAR have an island just a few kilometres away from their HQ. They appear to be using that island to house non-hostile monsters and are calling it 'The Garden'. Are you still holding on to the device I gave to you?"

"Yes, but that creature was powerful! That horned dalmatian have no chance against it!"

"Remember to keep it fed. I do not want it to go on a rampage and reveal itself. There is a Gudon around the area, feed the monster with it."

"No problem, leave it to me," Junichi said as he got back into his car. A strange device could be seen in the backseat.

The hooded figure watch the car disappear around the corner when a clawed hand grabbed his shoulders. Instinctively, the hooded figure hit it aside and turned around, already in fighting position.

"Hahaha, if it isn't my old friend Espian! I was starting to feel lonely in this planet," Verach Seijin Umbrager said, clearly pleased to see a comrade.

"Ah, Umbrager! It's been a while. This human agent I found is very good at his job."

"Interesting, we happened to have the same human agent doing our dirty jobs. Why have you come to Earth, anyway?"

"The same mission as you, old friend. Wreck a bit of havoc on this planet, and strike when the time is right. How long more should we wait?"

"Lord Darkaizer is still recuperating from his war injuries. He says it will probably take a year and a half more."

* * *

"So the Garden is an island where non-hostile monsters are brought to?" Yuka asked. She was in Dr Kurosaki's office with Jake.

"Yes, Yuka. Right now, Snowgon is on the island. It seems that she is getting used to the climate there."

"So Snowgon-" Jake was about to begin when Yuka cuts him off.

"We can't keep calling Snowgon 'Snowgon'! Can't we give her a name?"

"Well, I've given her the name 'Miyuki', and she seemed to like it, so there you go," Dr Kurosaki said, smiling.

"Okay, so Miyuki-"

"Can we go and visit her?" Yuka asked excitedly as Jake facepalmed.

"Not now, actually. We're still constructing a base on that island where my team and I can monitor the monsters' behaviour and make sure that they do not rampage."

Just then, the PA system sounded.

"Jake, Yuka, get back to Ops Room. We've got a problem," Captain Iketani's voice boomed through the speaker.

* * *

"This is messed up," Dean said as he and the rest of Raptor Team watched two monsters fighting in a construction site, the whole scene being displayed on the screen.

"That's Gudon, right?" Yuka asked, pointing to the monster with two whips for arms.

"Correct. It appeared during MAT's time along with another monster known as Twin Tail," Toru explained as he searched through SCAN's datafiles.

"What the hell is that flying creature Gudon is fighting?" Jake asked, pointing to a bat-like creature with a scorpion-like tail and huge claws.

"Found it! It's known as Murcielias, a poisonous bat-like creature found in Mexico."

"Wait, didn't GEAR Mexico issue a warning to other GEAR branches that a monster had burst from some cliffs in their country and was headed towards Asia about two weeks ago?"

"Guess Japan got lucky," Ren muttered as he watch Murcielias smack Gudon around.

"Can't it use its whips to catch Murcielias?" Jake asked.

"I think it would have if it could," Captain Iketani answered.

Gudon tried to attack its flying opponent, but Murcielias was too fast and Gudon had suffered a number of wounds. Quickly, Murcielias stabbed Gudon in the neck with its tail. Gudon roared in pain, but ultimately succumbed to its wounds and the poison. Picking up its prey, Murcielias let out a piercing screech which was quickly cut off by the screen going in static.

"It seems Murcielias has a powerful screech that can disrupt electronics," Ayane said as she typed something on her keyboard.

Captain Iketani suddenly winced.

"Captain? Are you all right?" Yuka asked.

"He got injured while test firing the Pulse Launcher, and the doctors banned him from flying," Toru said before Captain Iketani could say anything.

"What? Just how many things are you keeping from us, Captain?"

"A lot of things, which I'll slowly reveal along the way. Anyways, don't worry about me. One more thing- the new guy comes tomorrow afternoon."

The others left the Ops Room, clearly worried about the Captain's injury. Once everyone was gone, Captain Iketani silently poured some coffee for himself before opening a laptop on the table and began accessing the profile of the new member, all the while trying to tolerate the pain in his leg.

* * *

A rather dashing man entered the Ops Room after lunch, dressed in Japan Air Self-Defense Force uniform. The insignias on his shoulders indicated that he was a First Lieutenant. Quickly, despite the pain in his knee, Captain Iketani got up to welcome the pilot, who seemed a little nervous being here.

"Everyone, this is First Lieutenant Akagi Hideki. From today onwards, he will be part of Raptor Team. Come, introduce yourselves."

"Well, I must say I'm-" Hideki was about to say something when Jake cuts in.

"I remember you! You're that ace pilot who is known to perform insane air combat tactics! I saw you when the JASDF came to visit Singapore four years ago! It's an honour to meet you!"

"Oh, ah, well, thank you," Hideki said sheepishly as he returned the handshake. Soon, everyone, even Ren, was pouring over him, asking him several questions.

"Well, I can't believe we have a celebrity join us! You are very famous among pilots, Lt. Akagi, even in my country" Dean said.

"Ah, I didn't expect to be so popular. Thank you."

"Well, Lieutenant, we should take you on a guide around the base. Ren, mind coming with me?" Kohaku asked.

"Sure, why not?"

As the three of them exited the room, Captain Iketani cleared his throat.

"I have another piece of good news for you all- the jets have been fully upgraded! Although, the amount of firepower and new tech added to them forced us to increase the size of the jets. We'll probably be taking them on a test flight soon. Now, since we ha-"

The alarm began sounding.

"Captain, we have a monster attack on an island just a few kilometres away from Bastion Cove!" Ayane said as she and Toru quickly accessed their computers.

"It's Murcielias, and it's fighting... Snowgon?"

"Dammit, it must be attacking the Garden!"

"The Garden? What are you talking about, Cap?"

"Yuka and I'll explain on the way. Captain, you wanna come?" Jake asked.

"Not with a permanently busted knee. You and Yuka go in the new Storm Owl. Make it fast, Dr Kurosaki is on the island right now with the Directors of GEAR USA, China and France!"

"Roger! Someone notify Ren and his group!" Dean said as he, Jake and Yuka rushed to the hanger.

* * *

"This is rather amusing. I never expect Kurosaki to e guiding the Directors of other GEAR Branches on this island," Junichi said to himself as he controlled Murcielias through the device Espian has given to him. The bat-like monster had laid waste to the beach area of the Garden and was about to wreck the near-complete building on a ridge near the beach when Snowgon appeared and began brawling with Murcielias.

Thanks to Murcielias' speed and ability to fly, Snowgon was having a lot of difficulty fighting it. Near the building, Dr Kurosaki was shouting for Snowgon to stop fighting and get into the anti-monster bunker with them, almost trying to rush out into danger had the Director of GEAR France and a GCI soldier not stop her in time.

Realizing that she had no chance of beating Murcielias, Snowgon retreated, transformed back into human form, and quickly entered the anti-monster bunker with the rest, clutching an injured arm. Murcielias screeched in victory as Junichi laughed, overlooking the whoel scene from a cliff. Just ehn, the roar of engines caught his attention. He looked up, only to see three high-tech fighter jets racing towards Murcielias.

"Pft, Raptor Team. Seems they have a new jet," Junichi muttered.

"Dr Kurosaki, are you all right?" Jake asked through the radio.

"I'm fine, so are the foreign Directors and everyone else, but Miyuki got injured fighting Murcielias."

"All right, stay in there until we get rid of Batty-Scorpio here," Jake replied.

"Who's Miyuki?" Dean asked.

"Snowgon's human name," Yuka said nonchalantly.

"So, Toru, explain our new jets?" Ren asked as he and Kohaku, inside the new Storm Sparrow, closed in on Murcielias, who has taken flight again.

"To install more automatic laser weapons and missiles in the Strom Sparrow, we took the remaining two apart and put them back together as one aircraft. We've also increased the engine boost and made the design sleeker for fast movement. Thus, the Storm Sparrow is best used in pursuit and dogfights. Try getting rid of Murcielias' tail. It's the most dangerous."

Ren aqnd Kohaku pursued Murcieias in the Storm Sparrow, stunned at its new speed. They quickly caught up with Murcielias and opened fire. Four rotating barrels appeared on the Storm Sparrow, two at the nose of the jet and two more beside the cockpit, and opened fire. Murcielias screeched in pain as several laser bolts struck its back. Kohaku fired the missiles at Murcielias, hitting it in the wings and tail, resulting in the tail coming off.

"Got it!" Ren cheered.

"Yuka, Jake, the Storm Owl is designed to bombard the enemy and slow it down. It is also equipped with special rockets that can be changed via a rotating cylinder. I based the design on a revolver and WW2 bombers. Don't let it's shape fool you, the Owl can be as fast as the Sparrow. Try to disable Murcielias' wings, or at least knock it out of the sky."

"Ready for this, Yuka?" Jake asked as he zeroed in on Murcielias, who had been slowed by the pain caused by the disembering of its tail.

"Yep," Yuka replied as she accessed the rockets via a computer screen.

The Storm Owl resembled a WW2-era bomber with short wings and two cannons that resembles the barrel of a revolver in front of the Owl. Four smaller guns are located on the sides of the Owl.

Jake opened fire as they neared Murcielias. Energy spheres shot out from the smaller guns of the Storm Owl and struck Murcielias, causing it to lose its balance. As it tried to regain its flight, Yuka fired a red-coloured missile on its left wing, setting it ablaze.

"If red is fire, then blue must be freezing missiles, right?" Yuka asked.

"Correct, Yuka. White is for smokescreens and green is sticky glue missile."

"Why is there an empty socket?"

"There's a chance that we might face monsters that only reacts to certain chemicals or materials, so that slot is for these unique missiles."

"So we have Fire, Frost, Smoke and Sticky. Interesting missiles," Jake said as he veered out of Murcielias' way.

The fire on Murcielias' wing was too much for it to handle and it plummet to the ground. Hideki, now wearing a GEAR Raptor uniform, and Dean approached it in the Storm Kestrel. Like the Storm Sparrow, it resembles a fighter jet, except the Storm Kestrel is larger, bulkier and more armoured, with a huge barrel sticking out the front of the jet, two rotating-barrel laser guns on its sides and two missile pods behind the cockpit.

"The Kestrel's main goal is to deal heavy damage to the target. We've upgraded it to the point where it can take more damage than normal aircrafts, can fire cluster missiles in addition to normal ones. It also has the destructive Skybreaker Laser Cannon, which is powerful enough to destroy a few buildings in one hit."

"You've been in a lot of air combat simulations, Lt. Akagi. How does it feel to be in your first live combat?" Dean asked.

"Ha, to be honest, I'm kind of scared, but also excited. And please, just call me Hideki."

"No problem, Hideki. Let's give that bat a volley," Dean replied as he fired the cluster missiles at Murcielias. As Murcielias is bombarded by the missiles, Hideki fired the Skybreaker Laser Cannon. The destructive stream of energy struck Murcielias, travelling upwards from its legs to head, leaving several burn wounds on Murcielias. The giant bat monster collapsed to the ground lifeless.

From his vantage point, Junichi dropped the device as sparks flew out of it. Cursing his ill luck, he quickly scaled down the cliff, hopped onto a jet-ski, and made his escape.

"All right, we did it! Murcielias is down!" Dean announced to the other two aircrafts.

"No, wait, something's happening!" Yuka said.

Everyone watched in shock as Murcielias' body began violently convulsing before ripping apart, and a new Murcielias burst from the body.

"It can shed its skin to protect itself?"

"No, it does that to heal its wounds. I was hoping that our attack would weaken it enough to the point where it no longer have the energy to regenerate itself," Toru explained.

"Is there anyway we can prevent it?"

"Well, according to GEAR Spain, Murcielias has an adverse reaction to electricity, but we don't have any electrical weapons."

Just then, Murcielias released its supersonic screech. The destructive screeching caused all three aircrafts to go haywire.

"Dammit, the Sparrow's out of control!" Ren called out.

"So are the Owl and Kestrel!" Hideki said as he tried to maintain control.

"Everyone, prepare emergency landing!" Captain Iketani ordered through the radio as he watched the whole scene unfold back at Bastion Cove with the two operators.

With much struggle, the pilots managed to bring their individual aircrafts to the ground safely, but all of them landed at different areas of the island. In the Owl's case, it landed by the beach.

"C'mon, we need to engage it by foot," Jake said as he opened the cockpit for Yuka and himself to get out.

"I'll try to get a better shot from there," Yuka said as she ran into the jungle, despite Jake calling her not to. Jake wondered why she would try to hit Murcielias from inside the jungle when a bright light emitted from the jungle.

Ever since the Iceron incident, Jake had wanted to ask Yuka about who she really was. And now he knew.

* * *

"It's Aegis!" Dean called out in pleasant surprise as he and Hideki got out of the Storm Kestrel. Hideki looked in awe at the silver and blue giantess, who had adopted a fighting position. On another side of the island, Ren and Kohaku climbed up a hill to watch the whole battle.

Murcielias immediately tried to use its sonic screech again, but Aegis lunged forward and held tis mouth shut while delivering a few kicks to it. She then pulled her fist back and delivered a powerful punch to Murcielias' throat. Murcielias fell backwards, got up and tried to do its sonic screech, only to force a few gurgles out instead.

"Aegis had damaged its throat to prevent that screeching attack!" Toru said back at Bastion Cove as Ayane clasped her hands together in joy. Captain Iketani watched from behind, a smile of relief on his face.

Murcielias immediately tried to use its stinger tail, but realized that it had not regenerated when Ren and kohaku shot it off. With both its weapons now rendered useless, it began using its speed and ability to fly to attack Aegis, knocknig her down a few times. Aegis tried a few of her energy arc attacks, only to miss completely.

* * *

"It's dodging her Arc Slicers," Ayane said.

"What?" Toru and Iketani asked together.

"Well, I came up with names for her attacks, see?"

Both Toru and Iketani looked at each other, stumped.

* * *

Murcielias began flying higher and higher, now out of reach from Aegis unless she engaged it in aerial combat. Unfortunately, everytime she tried to take flight, Murcielias swoops down and knocks her to the ground.

"Dammit, Murcielias is stunlocking her," Ren muttered.

Aegis got up, clearly irritated by the constant attacks. Brushing off some dirt and mud from her arms and shoulders, she began to recall some of the things Toru and Jake had said back at Bastion Cove.

"_It kills its opponents by constricting them with its tail and channelling electricity through them.__"_

"_Can't it use its whips to catch Murcielias?"_

"_Murcielias has an adverse reaction to electricity"_

An idea suddenly popped inside Aegis' mind. Grabbing hold of her right bracer, she began charging electricity into it, then releasing her grip to reveal her entire right bracer charged with green coloured electricity. Pulling her right arm back, she swung it forwards, creating an electrical whip on her right hand. Aiming at Murcielias, she pulled back her right arm again and swung it at Murcielias, resulting in the electrical whip wrapping around Murcielias. Murcielias gurgled in pain and struggled as electricity coursed through its body. Not holding back, Yuka generated more electricity on her left hand and reached out to grab her right hand, resulting in more electrical energy being channeled through the whip.

"She has such an attack? Let's call it the Thunder Whip," Ayane said excitedly as she scribbled onto a piece of paper.

"Hey, we haven't even come up with a name for her beam attack," Toru complained.

Murcielias' struggles got weaker as Aegis kept up her attack. Finally, Aegis released the Thunder Whip, the attack dissipating into nothing, as the charred body of Murcielias fell to the ground, finally dead.

"Way to go! She defeated it!" Ren yelled as he fist pumped the air while Kohaku kept jumping up and down. At the Storm Kestrel, Dean was yelling in joy with both his arms in the air as Hideki salutes Aegis. At Bastion Cove, Ayane happily hugged Toru, who began choking as Ayane's grip was too strong.

"Well, I guess the Island is safe again," Captain Iketani said to himself as he sat down at the table with a smile of relief.

Aegis took off into the air. After a considerable distance where no one could see her, she transformed into a sphere of light and quickly returned to the island, turning back into her human form of Hidetate Yuka.

Yuka emerged from the jungle, only to find Jake watching her with a awkward smile on his face.

"Did you see her fight?" Yuka asked.

"I think I was watching you fight, Yuka," Jake replied.

Yuka was stunned by his reply, and then realized that he now knew who she was.

* * *

"Please, keep it a secret! Don't tell anyone, okay?" Yuka pleaded to Jake as they walked down the beach towards the building Dr Kurosaki and the others were holed up in. Bastion Cove had sent a number of boats over the the Garden to retrieve Dr Kurosaki, her colleagues, the foreign guests and other GEAR personnal. Miyuki was also being sent back to Bastion Cove to receive treatment

"This is the fifth time you asked me! I'm not that dumb to reveal to the whole world who you are!"

"One can never be too careful."

"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, how long will you be on Earth?"

"I don't know," Yuka replied.

"And one more question. I know that most Ultras only have three to five minutes on Earth due to atmosphere and the need for solar energy, right? But why is it that you are able to remain on Earth for ten minutes without your Color Timer blinking?"

"I'm not from this dimension," Yuka replied, suddenly having a confused look on her face.

"What?"

"I'm not from this world. According to the Commander of the Space Garrison, I do not need solar energy to survive. But what about my past? Zoffy said I was found floating in space after a wormhole appeared and disappeared. Where was I from? What was I known back in the dimension I came from? All of these, I don't know at all. It's annoying, to constantly be reminded that part of your past has disappeared completely from your memories."

Jake was silent for a while, deep in thought.

"Did you just remember about your memery loss, or has it been bugging you ever since you arrived in this world?"

"It's been bugging me ever since I woke up in the Land of light, on Nebula M78."

"Hm... You know what, Yuka? Leave the hole in your past alone for now. Sometimes, it's better to leave it than try to find out what it is. Things... sometimes get ugly. Take it slow and steady," Jake said as he clasped his hand on her right shoulder in a reassuring manner.

"True, but I want to at least know where I was from," Yuka said sadly.

"Well, next time an Ultra comes to Earth, we can ask them, right? Maybe one of them might have some idea where you were from. C'mon, the others have arrived. Let's go join them," Jake said as he patted her shoulder before waving to the others, who had managed to make their way to the beach from their respective landing zones.

Yuka watched him as he ran to greet the others, and a small smile appeared on her face.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Profile: Eleking

Origins: Ultraseven

An electrical monster used by Alien Pitts to invade Earth, it is a good swimmer as well as a tough fighter, although the one encountered by Raptor Team was already severely injured, hence easily killed

Profile: Gudon

Origins: Return of Ultraman

The predator of Twin Tail, this monster had whips for arms and is known for its tunnelling ability as well. It has spikes around its body as well

Profile: Murcielias

Origins: Original Creation

A bat-like insectoid monster that first appeared in Mexico, it has a poisonous stinger as a tail, claws at the ends of its wings and a powerful sonic screech that can disrupt electronics.

* * *

**Chapter 6: The Reflecting Monster**

Construction workers accidently unleashes a deadly monster sealed away in a lake centuries ago when they removed an ancient tombstone that was blocking their path. Responding to the call, Raptor Team finds themselves in trouble against its reflective skin which even cause Aegis' attacks to rebound back to her! As the monster approaches the city, Toru, Dean and the members of the SRDID must come up with a new weapon to counter the reflective properties of the monster.


	6. Chapter 6: The Reflective Monster

**Chapter 6: The Reflective Monster**

"Come on! We're already halfway to completing the new tunnel! Let's speed up our work, men!"

A foreman shouted words of encouragement to the other construction workers as they went on their work, trying to finish the building of a new train tunnel before the deadline.

The foreman, Itsuki, was a young, jovial man well liked by his fellow workers. He would volunteerily help out in the construction and sometimes go out of his way to ensure that the workers' needs are met. Having heard his encouraging words, the workers all increased their efforts in the construction, some singing merrily as they worked.

Soon, it was lunch time. As the men settled down to eat, they were distracted by one of the workers shouting from the tunnel.

"Itsuki-san! Itsuki-san! You must come see this!" the worker, Takao, shouted out.

Feeling something amiss, Itsuki put down his burger and ran over to Takao, followed by a few other workers. Takao led them down the tunnel, all the way to the end. What they saw caused the men to stop right in their tracks.

A large tombstone stood in the middle of the tunnel, completely sealing off any attempts to continue construction. Curious, Itsuki approached the tombstone and cautiously tapped it. Nothing happened, so the other workers slowly gathered around the tombstone. Holes were dug around it, clearly to see whther there was any remains underneath.

"What is a tombstone doing inside the middle of a hill?" one of the workers asked.

"Very strange indeed," Itsuki replied as he gently pushed against the tombstone, which refused to budge.

"Seems to be rooted the the ground. Takao, see if we can remove it or something."

"Er, Itsuki-san, I may sound superstitious, but it is a tombstone after all. I don't think it's a good idea," another worker commented.

"Well, this tombstone has been here for a long time. I don't really see why we should not remove it. Don't worry, everyone. Takao, sledgehammer."

Takao nervously handed a sledgehammer to Itsuki, who proceeded to swing it at the tombstone. Upon the second hit, the tombstone shattered. Everyone immediately looked around, expecting something to happen.

Nothing happened.

"See, I told you it was safe. C'mon, don't fret about it anymore. Come, let's continue our lunch," Itsuki said to the other workers in a reassuring way as he herded them out of the tunnel. As the workers exited the tunnel, a green eye with no pupils slowly opened in the darkness.

* * *

"What the hell are these?" Ren asked as he pointed downwards at a few pieces of paper on the table in the Ops Room.

"Oh, Ayane decided to come up with names for Aegis' attacks, and these were her ideas," Toru replied, not even looking up from the computer screen.

"Interesting, let me see... so the arc-shaped energy attack she does with her arms is called the Arc Slicer, huh?" Dean said as he looked at the papers, which have drawings of Aegis' currently known attacks along with the name.

"And that new attack she did in her fight with Murcielias, the Thunder Whip. Nice name, Ayane," Kohaku said.

"What about her beam attack? And the kick attack? And her shield?"

"The beam attack can be called the Lumiante Shot," Jake suddenly said.

"What? What kind of name is that?" Ren asked.

"It sounds nice. I like it!" Yuka said as she pushed Ren aside, much to his annoyance.

"Well, seeing how the energy she compresses into her kicks are made of electricity, we'll just call her kicking move the Lightning Kick, and her shield power... hmm... since it reflects the opponent's attacks in the case of Belnam, let's call it Reflect Guard."

"How did you even come up with those names?" Dean asked, a bit confused.

"I dunno, just popped into my head," Jake replied in a nonchalant way while sneaking a glance at Yuka, who gave a sly grin. Ever since he found out Yuka's identity, she had been sharing a few other secrets with him, starting with the actual names of her abilities.

Just then, the alarm went off. Everyone stood on alert as Ayane and Toru quickly typed into their computers. The screen quickly displayed the Kanagawa region, zooming in onto a mountain area where a red dot was flashing.

"Hey, aren't they building a new tunnel in that area?" Dean asked as Captain Iketani and Hideki entered the Ops Room.

"What's going on?" Captain Iketani asked as he walked towards Toru and Ayane, a slight limp on his right leg clearly visible.

"Cap, SCAN's picking up a suspect monster in this region," Ayane replied.

"SCAN has not been able to identify the creature yet," Toru said as he looked up from the keyboard.

"Hmm... All right. Ren, Kohaku, take the Storm Sparrow and patrol the area. Yuka, Jake, Hideki, Dean, take the lander Wolf and go to the area. See what you can find."

* * *

The Lander Wolf stopped right in front of the construction site as workers began gathering around a few police cars. Yuka and the rest got off the vehicle and made their way to the incomplete tunnel while the police officers present tried to keep the curious workers away. The Storm Sparrow hovered nearby, in case of any monster appearing.

"All right, who's in charge here?" Hideki asked.

"I am, at the moment," the foreman Itsuki said as he stepped forward.

"We're from GEAR. A few hours ago, our satellites picked up some strange activity going on around here. Have you people seen anything strange?"

"No, but one of my workers, Takao, has gone missing. A friend of his said he went back into the tunnel, so I sent two other workers to get him, but they haven't shown up since!"

Hideki looked at Jake, who looked concerned.

"Officer, can you tell me what is going on?" Yuka asked one of the police officers, a young man with rather large eyes.

"I'm not sure myself, ma'am. We received a call about workers having disappeared inside the tunnel and came to investigate, and now two of our own people have gone missing."

"I see, thanks for your information," Yuka said ashse got back to the others.

"Two police officers have gone missing inside the tunnel," Yuka said.

"Three workers as well," Dean added.

"Should we go in and investigate?" Hideki asked.

"Better move in a large group. The foreman, Itsuki, come here, I need your help," Jake called out as he waved his hands in the air, trying to get the workers and police officers to gather.

After much convincing, Itsuki agreed to lead a few of his fellow workers and some police officers to accompany th four of them down the tunnels. Jake and Hideki led the group, with all Raptor Team members and police officers with their weapons drawn, and the contruction workers armed with shovels, pickaxes and hammers. Those carrying their torches quickly switched them on as they went deeper down the tunnel.

Soon, they arrived at a clearing. Everyone was stunned at what they found. The corpse of a police officer laid in the middle, his face a mask of absolute terror. Walknig towawrds the body, Hideki and Jake bent down to inspect it. Nearby was a large hole of unknown origins.

"Broken neck," Hideki said as he looked up.

"Not just that, help me pick the body up."

Jake and Hideki picked the body up by its arms and legs. True enough, the body sagged unnaturally.

"Several of his bones have been broken. Something large and powerful must have either slammed him hard on the ground or thrown him a good distance," Jake said as he carefully laid down the body.

"Look, guys, more bodies, over there," Dean pointed at the left side of the clearing.

The group went over, discovering the bodies of the two missing workers. Both were badly mangled. The second missing police officer could be seen lying lifeless on a pile of rocks nearby.

"There's one more worker missing. Where is his body?" Yuka asked.

"H... Help me..." A voice could be heard comnig from the rocks where the second police officer's corpse was lying on. Rushing forward, Itsuki and a few other workers pulled the corpse off the rocks and began clearing them away, revealing Takao, who appeared to be all right apart from an injured arm and a cut on his head.

"Takao, you're all right!" Itsuki said happily.

"Itsuki-san... we must get out! There's something here!" Takao said franctically.

All of a sudden, a roar could be heard. Everyone turn around only to see a huge lizard-like monster bursting out of the hole in the clearing. The workers screamed and fled, with Itsuki carrying Takao on his back. Raptor Team and the police officers followed suit as well, as the monster began smashing its way out of the tunnel, causing a cave-in.

Everyone managed to get out safely, and they watched in awe as the strange monster burst from the hillside. Its skin was shiny and strangely glass-like. As the police officers evacuated the workers from the site, Yuka and the others began firing their weapons at the lizard monster, only to discover their laser bolts reflecting off the monster's skin.

"What? It reflected?" Hideki said, astonished.

"Ren, Kohaku, try using the Sparrow against it!" Dean said through his helmet's radio.

"Roger that," Ren replied as he steered the Storm Sparrow into position. The Storm Sparrow opened fire on the monster, but its skin reflected away most of the laser bolts as well, Worse, due to the amount of shots as well as the rate of fire, stray bolts flew around, striknig the ground and the hill, or disappearing to the air. Yuka and Jake dove for cover behind a crane while Hideki and Dean ran towards a nearby bulldozer, barely avoiding one of the reflected bolts. Meanwhile, the Storm Sparrow managed to dodge most of the reflected shots.

"Dammit, what's wrong with that monster?" Ren grumbled.

"Ayane, Toru, any information on this monster?" Kohaku asked.

"None, I'm afraid," Ayane's worried voice came through the receiver.

Back on the ground, Yuka decided that it was time for her to take action. Nodding to Jake, she quickly sprinted towards the tunnel without Hideki and Dean realizing, and transformed into Aegis.

"Look, it's Aegis!" Dean called out as Aegis landed behind the monster and took up her usual fighting pose, right fist outwards and left palm slightly behind.

The monster charged at Aegis, who managed to counter it into a DDT, smashing the monster's head to the ground. She then punched it in the head, only to step back in pain as she began shaking her right hand. A piece of the monster's skin fell to the ground.

"_Good grief, what's its skin made of?"_ Aegis thought as she did a quick somersault to the side to avoid the monster's swipes. Aegis tried to kick it, but only succeeded in causing pain to her own leg. She dodged antoehr attack and fired an Arc Slicer, only for the monster's skin to reflect the attack back onto her.

Jake hissed at the sight of Aegis stumbling backwards as a result of her own attack being sent back to her. Aegis then attempted to use her Thunder Whip on the monster, but despite the electricity running through its body, the monster didn't really seem to notice, even breaking out of the attack. Confused, Aegis could only grapple with the monster as it struck her a number of times, even sending her flying backwards with a powerful kick and headbutt combo.

Getting up, Aegis charged up her leg with energy and kicked at the monster. The monster was unaffected. Undeterred, Aegis tried again, this time using a roundhouse method, the same move she used against Birdon. Still, the monster did not fall or show any signs of pain. Desperate, Aegis tried three more times. This time, the monster stumbled, having felt the impact from her repeated attacks, but Aegis was too tired and in pain to perform anymore roundhouses.

"Hey, that's not good," Hideki said to Dean as they watch as Aegis took a tail strike to the head..

"Yeah, I know. Aegis! Retreat for now!" Dean shouted out.

Aegis, who was now frustrated by both the defense of the monster and her Color Timer blinking, clecnhed her fists in anger, but left with no other choice, she flew off, leaving the monster to roar in victory as it disappeared into the lake near the construction site.

* * *

"Argh, it's pissing me off!"

Yuka grumbled as she walked down the streets, clearly angered by her inability to defeat the monster that had appeaered yesterday. Captain Iketani had told the rest of Raptor Team to take a day off in the morning, so Yuka had dragged Jake to go around Tokyo's shopping districts with her. Thanks to the monster's skin, Yuka's right knuckles suffered some minor injuries and she was also suffering from a black eye, which Jake managed to cover up by saying that he had accidently elbowed her in the eye. Earlier, she had been limping, having strained her foot kicking at the monster, but have recovered from it.

"Well, Toru and Dr Kurosaki are trying to work out how to defeat it," Jake said, trying to get Yuka to cheer up.

"Hmph, that accursed monster, this is the first time I was forced to retreat in battle."

"Well, we can't always win. That's reality."

Yuka pouted in annoyance. Jake wondered what the other Ultramen would have said if they saw Yuka now. At the moment, Dr Kurosaki and the members of the SRDID have retrieved the piece of skin Aegis had managed to punch off and are trying touse it to find a weakness in the monster.

"Oof, er... sorry, mister, let me help you with that," Yuka apologized to a monk, having bumped into him and caused him to drop his items.

As Jake and Yuka helped the monk gather up his items, the monk quickly stuffed a piece of paper into Jake's hand. Before he could ask anything, the monk got up, having all his items in his hands once again.

"Ah, thank you. And please be more attentive next time, miss. Good day to you both," the monk said in a stern but friendly tone as he quickly left the area. Jake took note of the strange ring the monk had been wearing.

"What's that?" Yuka asked, pointing at the piece of paper in Jake's hand.

"Strengthen your legs and the monster will fall. That monk stuffed it into my hands just now, but for some reason I have a feeling it's meant for you."

* * *

"Any luck, Doc?" Iketani asked as he, Dean and Toru watched Dr Kurosaki and her team doing experiements on the piece of the monster's skin that had been broken off when Aegis punched it.

"This sample is a new kind of metal that also contains several properties similar to mirrors, glass and diamonds. It is an entirely new material never seen before. All attempts to damage it had ended in failure."

"No kidding. How did you guys even managed to bent this kind of equipment" Dean remarked as he looked at a rock drill with the drilling part completely bent out of shape.

"We even tried a rocket launcher, but this sample took the shot without any damage. I suggest firing some rockets into its mouth when it appears next time. That is probably the only way we are going to injure it," Dr Kurosaki said as she dumped a broken chainsaw into a trashbag.

Just then, Ren and Kohaku entered the room carrying several pieces of rubble.

"What the heck are those?" Toru asked.

"We were asking the foreman of the construction site if there was anything strange that happened before the attack, and he told us that he smashed this tombstone to get it out of the way when some workers found it while digging the tunnel."

"Put it back together. We might be able to gather some clues about it."

After the tombstone was put back together, Dr Kurosaki and Toru began translating the words on the tombstone.

"Strange, it's written in ancient Chinese. Let's see... Ah, I get it now. The monster is known as Kagaiza, a monster whose skin is made of a unique metal. It terrorised the local settlements during the Feudal Era. A travelling Chinese magician defeated it and sealed in away in the mountains where they are building the new tunnel since it proved too difficult to kill. The tombstone was a seal to keep it in slumber."

"So the workers smashed the tombstone and awakened Kagaiza," Ren concluded.

"Wait, if its skin is metal as you said, then..." Toru suddenly said out aloud.

"Captian, SCAN had located the monster! It is currently swimming around the Yamato Basin!" Ayane said as she burst into the lab room.

"Good, continue to track its movements. Come with me to the Ops Room, we need to update the monster's information," Captain Iketani said ashe ushered Ayane out of the room.

"You know, if this monster's skin really is metal, I think I have a way to defeat it," Toru said as he looked up from the sample.

"A way to defeat it? You saw how hard the skin is. It even reflected our laser beams! How are y- oh, I get it now," Dean said, a sly grin appearing on his face as he and Toru shared comically evil looks on their faces.

* * *

Hideki stumbled, nearly falling to the ground, having recoiled from the kick he delivered to Jake. The three of them were in one of the many gyms on Bastion Cove. Hideki had agreed to help Jake and Yuka in physical combat training.

"Hideki, you all right?" Jake asked as he clapped the focus mitts he was wearing.

"Yeah, I'm fine, must have slipped. Let me try again."

Hideki prepared himself, then performed a superkick towards the focus mitts. This time, Jake stumbled backwards. Meanwhile, Yuka watched and waited on a bench near the entrance.

"You guys done? Okay, my turn," she said as Jake and Hideki went at the bench, having gotten tired and thirsty.

"Why did she asked me to help her train all of a sudden?" Hideki whispered to Jake as Yuka skipped towards the punching bag.

"Er... she was out with me when this guy tried to mug us and she attempted to take him down. The mugger floored her instead and, well, I had to kick his head in. Then she got all esxcited and, well, there you go," Jake lied.

"She was limping in the afternoon. She's walking fine now, but what if her injury comes back?"

"I brought her to a massage parlor," Jake lied again, but he was unsure whether this could fool Hideki.

"You know, now that we're here, I need to talk to you about something," Hideki said as he watched Yuka start roundhouse-kicking the punching bag.

"What is it?"

"It's Ren. I noticed that he seems to be getting more and more hostile towards me. I will explain something to him and he starts muttering about me being a busybody."

"Damn, I knew it. When you arrive I had a feeling that Ren won't get along with you. Don't let him bother you though- his bark's worst than his bite."

"I hope so. He hasn't been speaking to me normally ever since I beat him at the flight simulation test. You know, the racing part?"

"You did? Game over, buddy. Not even I help you with that. That was his pride you just defeated," Jake said as he patted Hideki on his shoulders in a sympathic way before going over to help Yuka perfect her kicking style.

"Wow, this is even harder than I thought," Yuka said as she sat down on the mat, having tired herself out trying different forms of kicking techniques.

"You should have just focused on one or two," Jake replied as he helped Yuka up.

"True, but I think I'm getting the hang of it. But I'm not sure whether I have the strength to damage that creature," Yuka whispered, making sure that Hideki cannot hear her.

"Don't worry about it, anyway, which one do you prefer? Or are you going back to the roundhouse?"

"I'm sticking with the roundhouse. It was the very first kicking move I used. Remember Birdon?"

"Yeah, but ever tried jumping while performing that kick?"

"That's interesting, maybe I should try it."

"I think you've tried enough for one night. C'mon, we need to get some rest," Jake said as he beckoned to Hideki that they were done for the night.

* * *

Kagaiza roared as it trampled nearby houses and smashed its tail into buildings, wrecking havoc in the city. As it continued on its rampage, the Storm Birds (Sparrow, Kestrel and Owl) arrived on the scene.

"Seriously, the Storm Birds? Can't we come up with a better name?" Ren asked.

"Nope, but you seem to have some good ideas. Do share with us," Jake replied in a sarcastic tone.

"Hey, it can't be helped that our fighters are named after birds," Toru countered over the radio.

"Enough about birds, concentrate on Kagaiza!" Captain Iketani said loudly, having been beside Toru in the Ops Room.

"Okay, here's the battle plan. Kagaiza's skin can reflect our laser weapons and is extremely hard to crack, so we're going physics on this one. And we've brought some help from the Garden."

On the streets near the area where Kagaiza is, several Gci soldiers had set up an artillery zone, all aimed at Kagaiza. Among them was Miyuki, who watched the Storm Birds flew past before being engulfed in a blue light. Within seconds, she assumed her true form of Snowgon. Sensing her presence, Kagaiza turned around and roared, challenging her.

"Be careful where you aim, men! Do not hit Snowgon!" Captain Kimura ordered as he took his position beside one of the howitzers.

"Raptor Team, listen up! First, the Storm Owl will attack it with FIre Rockets to heat it up. For this battle, we have replaced all other missiles with Fire Missiles. Once Kagaiza is burning, will have Snowgon cool it down quickly, but not freeze it into an icicle. Then the artillery squard, the Storm Sparrow and the Storm Kestrels will unleash all their explosive weapons on it once it's cooled off."

"I don't understand. Explain in simpler terms?"

"What Toru is trying to say is we heat Kagaiza up, then cool it off quickly to make the skin brittle before hammering away with explosives," Dean said.

"All right, begin the attack!"

The Storm Owl fired all of its Fire Missiles at Kagaiza, two at a time, engulfing Kagaiza in flames. As it burned, Snowgon attacked it with her freezing breath. Once the fire had been put out, the Storm Sparrow and Storm Kestrel unloaded all of their missiles at it. The GCI soldiers also attacked Kagaiza with their howitzers. Kagaiza roared in pain as it thrashed around. Finally, it collapsed.

"Cease fire! Cease fire!" Captain Kimura shouted at his men.

As the smoke cleared, Kagaiza could be seen lying on the ground lifeless.

"is it dead?" Kohaku asked.

"It's not dead yet! SCAN indicates that it is still alive! And its skin... Look!"

Horrifed, Ayane pointed to the screen, which shows a zoomed-in picture of Kagaiza's head. Kagaiza's skin, which was cracked, was now repairing itself.

"It's regenerating itself! What do we do?" Captain Iketani asked.

"Nothing we can do now... The artillery shells are spent and we have no other way to heat up the skin again."

"You heard that, Yuka?" Jake asked, having switched off his helmet's radio.

"Yeah, but thanks to you guys, I have a way to attack it. And I want to try out something you said," Yuka replied as the Shield Bracers appered on her wrists. Transforming into a ball of light, Yuka becomes Aegis in midair.

Kagaiza got up, all healed and ready to rampage again. Snowgon was about to charge at it herself when Aegis appeaered from the sky, tackiling Kagaiza to the ground. Quickly getting up, she massaged her shoulder before taking her fighting stance. Kagaiza roared and charged at her.

_If I'm not wrong, this should work_, Aegis thought as she activates her Thunder Whip on both her hands and lashed at Kagaiza. The Thunder Whips wrapped around Kagaiza, who tried to break free from them, only for Aegis to tighten her hold. Snowgon decided to help by holding Kagaiza in its place. As Aegis channeled more electricity into her Thunder Whips, Kagaiza's skin began to glow red, to the point where Snowgon had to release it to prevent herself from getting burns.

Aegis released Kagaiza from the Thunder Whips. Kagaiza, now a bright red, staggered around like a drunk man. Looking around, Aegis realized that the place they were fighting at was right beside the sea. Thinking quickly, she grabbed Kagaiza and hauled it above her head, ignoring the intense heat the monster was now emitting, before throwing it into the sea. Snowgon helped by reducing the temperature of the water to slightly above freezing point using her freezing breath. Kagaiza emerged from the water, no longer burning red but clearly weakened greatly. Aegis began running at full speed towards Kagaiza, her right leg now charged with light and electrical energy. She then jumped into the air, using the momentum from her run to propel herself forward. As she neared Kagaiza, she spun, performnig a roundhouse kick to Kagaiza's neck, shattering some of the skin around it.

"Wow! Aegis must have been watching our fight just now!" Toru said.

"What's going on? Aegis is now having the advantage over Kagaiza," Hideki asked.

"I think i know why. Aegis used the same tactic we used on it earlier, and knowing that it will regenerate its metal skin, she is attacking it as quick as she can to prevent it," Dean explained.

"Not just that, the skin shattered on impact when she kicked it! Take that, you metal skin bastard," Ren cheered.

"Hey Ayane, how does Lightning Roundhouse sound to you?" Kohaku asked.

"Yep, it's now officially replacing the Lightning Kick," Ayane replied.

Jake could only grin as he watched Aegis performed a few more Lightning Roundhouse on Kagaiza, shattering its skin to the point where only pieces are left, revealing its vulnerable body underneath.

"Damn, talk about getting skinned alive," Ren muttered.

"We can hear you, Ren, and it's a disgusting thought," Jake said.

"Yeah, I think my breakfast is in my throat," Hideki joked.

"Shut up, stunt pilot."

"Hey, now that was funny," Jake commented.

Cartwheeling backwards, Aegis fired her Lumiante Shot at Kagaiza, the attack ripping through Kagaiza's body. Kagaiza let out one final roar before falling to the ground, finally dead. Her battle won, Aegis flew off into the sky.

* * *

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! Kohaku! It hurts!"

Yuka was in the medical bay with Kohaku and Jake. Due to having overtaxed her right leg in the fight with Kagaiza, her leg was now in extreme pain, which was only made worst by Kohaku massaging it. Ren could only watch and grimace at the sight.

"Stop thrashing about! That's what you get for not resting your leg properly when it got strained yesterday! Hitting the gym with injuries is one of the dumbest things you can do!" Kohaku replied in a stern voice as she applied more force onto Yuka's leg.

"Kohaku, can you do it faster?" Jake pleaded- Yuka had been grabbing hold of his arm the whole time, and her nails have dugged into his flesh, drawing blood.

"You are another one asking for it! Bringing her to the gym when you know the muscles in her legs are strained! Serves you both right," Kohaku said before suddenly applying pressure to Yuka's leg.

As Yuka and Jake screamed in pain, the monk they had bumped into on the streets watched the buidling from a distance.

"You bounced back from a defeat, Aegis. I would go in and congratulate you, but your physical abilities need some improvements. I guess we'll have to meet, after all. But the tactics you and your comrades used against Kagaiza was superb," the monk said, mostly to himself. A small smile appeared on his face as he turned around and walked away, down the path towawwrds the entrance of Bastion Cove. As he walked, he looked down on his ring, which has a lion's head design on it.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Profile: Kagaiza

Origins: Original Creation

A strange monster that resembles a reptile, its scales possess a strange ability to cause light-based attacks to be reflected away from it while also providing it with a strong defense against physical attacks

* * *

**Chapter 7: Blue**

When Ultraman Hikari was still Hunter Knight Tsurugi, he blew up an entire neighbourhood in an attempt to kill Bogal. Despite the world now knowing that there are blue-coloured Ultramen, not all the survivors of the neighbourhood are able to accept it. Yuka learns this the hard way when these survivors booed and jeered her when she defeated a Twin Tail near the site of the tragedy, and an imposter seizes the opportunity to frame her. Her faith in humanity affected by that event as well as the knowledge of the Bogal incident, she encounters a man named Serizawa, who helped her understand more about why Ultramen fight to protect Earth


	7. Chapter 7: Blue

**Chapter 7: What I Look Like Does Not Matter**

_Year 2005, Bogal Incident_

_Mebius tried to hold off Bogal as it attempted to eat him, finally getting free and attacking it again, but as he and Bogal got into a standoff, a blue ray of light appeared, catching both their attention._

_From the blue light emerged a humanoid figure, blue and silver in colour. He looked like an Ultraman, but at the same time he appeared to be wearing some sort of armour._

_Before Mebius could do anything, the blue giant fired his beam attack at Bogal recklessly, only for the latter to teleport away. The beam instead hits a neighbourhood behind Bogal, completely destroying it in front of the horrified Mebius._

_Instead of showing any remorse, the blue giant merely watched the destruction calmly, and as Mebius turned back to face him, he dissappeared, leaving a furious Mebius to ponder over what just happened._

_Meanwhile, survivors of the blast emerged from the ruins, stumbling over each other as they tried to locate their family members. Several other bodies lay around the area, lifeless. By the time help arrived, an estimated 300 lives have been confirmed lost, and more are still being found._

_Among the ruins, an 8-year-old girl tugged at the hand of her mother, tears streaming down her cheeks. Her mother did not respond, her eyes closed, with blood flowing down her head. The corpse of a man laid nearby, having been crushed by falling debris. As a paramedic came to take her away from the scene of tragedy, she screamed out for her mother, still hoping that she would wake up._

_2015, Present Day_

Aegis poked Twin Tail at its two glowing spots, sending it rolling around the ground in pain as the rest of Raptor Team watched on. The Twin Tail had burst from the ground moments ago and attacked the nearby city, proving resistant to the weapons of the Storm Birds, although the Skybreaker Cannon was able to deal some injuries to it. Yuka had transformed into Aegis to fight it, and had managed to drive it to a corner.

Twin Tail, realizing that it could not defeat Aegis, tried to escape, but Aegis fired her Lumiante Shot at it, the beam attack so strong that unlike the usual monsters that simply fall and die, Twin Tail literally exploded in pieces.

"Holy... How are we going to clean that up?" Ren asked, stunned by the destruction.

"Well, it beats hauling an entire monster corpse back to Bastion Cove," Dean replied as he watched Twin Tail's head fall past the Storm Kestrel to the ground.

"Captain Iketani, Twin Tail has been neutralized. I repeat, Twin Tail has been neutralized," Kohaku reported back to Bastion Cove.

"Roger that. Time to head back, everyone. Clean-up will arrive in half an hour's time."

"Let's head ba- wait, what's that noise?" Hideki asked. True enough, Raptor Team could hear angry shouting from below.

A crowd of people had gathered near the battlefield, wielding signs that says 'Blues are Unwelcomed'.

"What the heck are those people doing?" Jake asked.

On the ground, Aegis looked at the crowd, confused, as they jeered at her and called out derogatory words while chanting "Ultramen are not Blue" loudly. Not wanting any confrontation, Aegis quickly left the scene, followed by Raptor Team in their jets.

"Yeah, you better not show up again, you blue witch!" A man shouted at them, clearly the leader of the crowd.

* * *

"What do you mean, there's a crowd of people standing there screaming vulgarities at Aegis?"

"we all saw it, Cap. They seem to have a problem with Aegis being blue," Hideki replied solemnly.

Raptor Team were confused at the earlier scene, wondering why these people would hate Aegis for being a different colour.

"Actually, Aegis isn't the first blue-coloured Ultra Warrior to protect Earth. During Mebius' time, there was another blue Ultraman known as Hikari," Toru said as he searched through SCAN's database.

"Well, if they can accept him, why can't they accept Aegis?" Yuka asked. There was a slight anger in her tone.

"Well, you see... er... Before Hikari was Hikari, he was known as... Tsurugi."

"Go on, Toru," Jake said.

"During the Bogal Incident of 2005, Tsurugi was chasing after Bogal, having tracked it to Earth. During one of their confrontations, he fired his beam at a teleporting Bogal, which hit a number of buildings that was behind Bogal. Mebius was fighting Bogal too at that time, and when he tried to confront Tsurugi, the latter simply left the place."

"What! But isn't he an Ultra?" Hideki asked, shocked by what Toru said.

"According to the files GUYS left for the next Earth defense team, which happened to be us, Tsurugi was consumed by hatred and vengeance, and it was only after he and Mebius defeated Bogal did he finally broke free of them, becoming Ultraman Hikari. But it seems Hikari still regrets the crimes he commited on Earth as Tsurugi," Toru finished.

"How many were lost in that incident, when Tsurugi's beam hit the buildings?" Kohaku asked.

"About... 344 lives," Ayane said in a near whisper.

"Ayane?" Dean asked, but Ayane suddenly got up and left the room.

"What happened? Why did Ayane..." Yuka asked.

"She... lost her parents in that incident," Jake said, clearly uncomfortable about the whole thing.

"I forgot about it. I should not have brought this up."

"Not your fault, Toru. A tragedy is a tragedy. But to remember how she had to survive on her own for ten bloody years," Ren said as he tapped Toru on the shoulder.

"You know what, I think I better go see to Ayane," Yuka said as she quickly left the room.

"Will she be okay?" Kohaku asked.

Jake was about to reply when the alarm went off.

"What the hell? That's an internal alarm. Something's happening in the base."

"Raptor Team, Kimura here. Can some of you guys come down here and help? There's a riot going on outside Bastion Cove Entrance," Captain Kimura of the GCI asked.

"Riot?"

"We best go down and settle the issue," Ren said as he left the room with Dean, Hideki and Jake.

* * *

Yuka found Ayane standing at one of the balconies in the building, looking out at the sea. Hearing her footsteps, Ayane turned around, quickly wiping away her tears.

"Ayane, you all right?"

"I'm fine, thanks."

"Ayane, I heard about what happened to you. I'm... sorry for your loss."

"It's been ten years, Yuka. I'm not ging to bear a grudge agaisnt Tsurugi like some of the other idiots who survived the Bogal Incident."

"You won't hate Ultramen because they're blue?"

"No, but the crowd you guys were talking about? The ones who were jeering at Aegis? They are my fellow survivors from the neighbourhood which was destroyed by Tsurugi."

"You know them?"

"Their leader, Ichiro Koga, was always a vengeful person. Anyone does something wrong to him, he remembers it to his grave. The whole neighbourhood likes him, however, since he was charismatic enough to lead them around like a puppeteer and his puppets. Whenever Ultraman Hikari appears on the news, he will led his fellow haters into protesting against Hikari. He likes to carry around a sign saying 'Blue is not Ultramen' wherever he goes."

Yuka remembers seeing a sign saying those words, and the man holding it who called her a blue witch when she was leaving.

_So that's Ichiro Koga_, she thought.

"Hey, Yuka, do you think that Ultraman Hikari will come back?" Ayane suddenly asked.

"Well, he defended Earth alongside Mebius, right? He probably would come back every now and then," Yuka replied, smiling at Ayane.

"You know, if he ever comes back, I want to tell him that Earth has forgiven him for the things he had done, so that he no longer needs to bear any more regrets."

"Well, that's a nice thought, Ayane."

* * *

"GEAR should be disbanded for helping that blue witch!" a man with a sign saying 'Blue is not Ultramen' shouted at the GCI soldiers who are trying to disperse the crowd peacefully.

"Listen, mister. If you have any disagreements with us, take it to the government. We are just doing our jobs," Hideki shouted behind the gate. Due to the crowd trying to force their way in, the gate had been closed, leaving the protestors on the other side.

"Be quiet you traitors! Earth has no need for blue-coloured Ultramen!"

"Sir, we really need you and your friends to leave the premise, now."

"We have every right to be here!"

"What's going on?" Ayane asked as she and Yuka joined the rest of the GEAR personnel at the gate.

"Tendou? Amn you! Why are you with them? Have you forgotten what happened to your parents?"

"Koga, it's been ten years! Didn't Hikari redeem himself already?"

"Nothing he does will redeem himself for the tragedy we had to endure! The only real Ultramen are red-coloured ones!"

"Damn you, that's outright racism!" Ren shouted back.

"Koga, stop it already! Can you really not forgive and forget? You lost one of your brothers when Tsurugi struck our neighbourhood with his beam. I lost my entire family! If I can let it go, why can't you?"

Koga became silent for a moment, then glared at Ayane.

"Let go? I'll show you letting go!"

Without warning, Koga hurled a glass bottle through the gaps in the gate at Ayane, striking her in the head.

"Ayane!" Yuka called out as she rushed to her aid.

"YOU BASTARD!"

Ren leapt onto the shoulders of two GCI soldiers and scrambled over the gate, falling on Koga and delivering multiple punches to him. Hideki, Jake and Dean followed suit, jumping over the gate to keep the other protestors off Ren.

* * *

"Unacceptable behaviour! All four of you! You guys are going to work without pay for the next three months! And you, Ren! Hand over your Dual Shooter! I want to see you go one month without a weapon! And you three better remember- this can happen to you as well! GEAR protects people, not start fights with them and knock out over 50 people! Oh, my blood pressure. Having to deal with you lot is just making it rise!"

Captain Iketani reprimanded the four 'heroes' who had jumped the gate to attack the protestors. Int he room were two government representatives and the Director of GEAR Japan, Saruda Sakamoto.

"Well, sirs, as you can see, we know how to deal with our own people should they ever cross the line. Now that you have all been assured, it's time for you all to leave. Men, escort them out safely."

"Thank you, Director. It was also nice to meet you again," one of the government representatives said as he and his partner got up and followed four GCI soldiers out the room into the lift.

Once the lift has gone down, Captain Iketani and Director Saruda dropped their stern expressions.

"Good job, you four! Those idiots were just asking for it, but I hope this does not happen again otherwise we will really have to take action. Especially you, Ren. You four are now off the hook," Director Saruda said as he flashed a grin at them. The four Raptor Team members snickered as Captain Iketani toss the Dual Shooter back to Ren.

"Well then, Shintaro, I'm going back to my office," the Director said to Captain Iketani, who nodded.

"How's Ayane?" Dean asked.

"She's fine, suffered a cut on her head but does not require and stitches or anything. Still, I have to bandage it up due to the length," Kohaku replied as she applied bandages around Ayane's head.

"That bastard, what's his name? Ichiro Koga?" Ren asked.

"Yeah, fellow survivor," Ayane replied.

"Actually, we might be in bigger trouble. Just now, when we were brawling with the protesters, I saw one of the reporters for the news among them. Yagami Eiji."

Just then, the alarm began ringing again, but this time, it was the alarm that signifies that a monster was invading.

"What's going on? Check if SCAN has picked up something," Captain Iketani said.

Ayane and Toru immediately located the source of the trouble.

"Seems to be a disturbance in Kyoto," Toru said as he zoomed in onto the area where the red dot was flashing.

"What the..." Dean uttered, as the others stared in shock and disbelief.

Aegis was thrashing the whole city, stompngi on small buildings and firing her bean attack around her location, causing havoc everywhere.

"It can't be..." Yuka said. Jake was also wondering what was going on.

Within seconds, the entire neighbourhood was in ruins. Satisfied with the damages, Aegis disappeared.

* * *

"Ultrawoman Aegis had suddenly gone rogue, destroying a neighbourhood in Kyoto. Hundreds have been reported injured, and there have been seven deaths," the newscaster reported.

"Why did she suddenly attack us? I thought she was on our side!"

"Maybe she had been mind-controlled?"

"I don't know what's going on! Is GEAR going to do anything about it?"

"Hey, weren't there reports of fake Ultramen trying to frame the real ones in the past?"

All the interviewees seemed to be on Aegis' side, but the next interviewee turned out to be Ichiro Koga.

"I always knew that blue-coloured Ultramen were imposters! See, the evidence is now in front of your eyes! Come, everyone, we must petition for the estruction of this Aegis and the disbanding of GEAR!"

The camera turned to show a large crowd of people holding protest signs and making a ruckus before a boot went into the screen of the television, cracking but not shattering it.

"I'm with you on that one, Hideki," Ren said. Being a Sunday, the crew of Raptor Team are not required to report to the Ops Room, although they must be ready for any alerts. The guys were in their bunk, watching the morning news on television. Pissed off by the crowd of anti-blue Ultramen protestors, Hideki had kicked right through the television.

"Slander, all of it," Hideki replied as Jake and Dean pulled out another plasma TV from the storeroom before taking the damaged one and bringing it back into the storeroom.

"But what do we do now? The newspapers are already printing out several nasty stuff about Aegis," Toru said as he showed everyone else the front page of today's newspapers.

"Aegis Shows True Colours. Reported by Yagami Eiji. See, I knew this crap was going to happen," Jake said as he ripped the newspaper apart and toss the pieces into the rubbish bin.

Just then, someone began knocking on the door. It then opened to reveal Yuka outside.

"Sorry guys, but can I..."

Yuka was stunned by the condition of the room. She had expected the room to be messy, but not that messy! The beds were in various angles, blankets all over the place, lockers opened, the chairs and a table messily placed at a corner and the wet clothes and towels were simply hanging from a rope in the bathroom, which was surprisingly clean given the state of the room. In fact, the only thing that was tidy was the area where the television and gaming console were located.

"Yuka, were you looking for something?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, I mean, er... nevermind," Yuka said as she left.

* * *

"What are you doing here, Ayane? Shouldn't you be resting?" Captain Iketani asked. He had came to the Ops Room, only to find Ayane, her head still bandaged, working on the computers, trying to find something.

"Captain, I believe the Aegis we saw yesterday was a fake."

"I can tell, too. But that Ichiro Koga is now leading a few thousand people down the streets calling for Aegis' death and disbanding of GEAR."

"Unless we can prove to them that Aegis has been framed. Anyways, about that Aegis yesterday, you guys noticed something wrong about her?" Ayane asked.

"Yeah, her eyes look weird, like she has not been sleeping for a long time."

"Can Ultramen sleep?" Ayane wondered.

"I don't know. What I was trying to say is there were black rings around her eyes," Captain Iketani said.

"Wait, black rings under her eyes?" Ayane asked.

"Yeah."

"That's it! It really was a fake Aegis! Captain, can you get everyone to the Ops Room. I'll explain everything when everyone is here."

* * *

People pointed or stared at Yuka as she walked down the pavement, entering a park, dressed in her full uniform. Using her telepathy, she listened to the thoughts and conversations of the humans around the area.

"Is Aegis really an evil Ultra pretending to be good?"

"That Ichiro fellow must be right about her."

"All blue Ultras must be like Tsurugi then."

"Why would GEAR protect Aegis?"

"Maybe the Aegis that attacked yesterday was a fake?"

A hand suddenly patted down on Yuka's shoulders, scaring her.

"What the- who are you?"

A man who appear to be in his late forties stood behind her, wearing a black jacket and a turtleneck underneath was behind her.

"Sorry to have bothered you. I noticed you have a troubled look on your face, miss."

"I'm all right, actually. Who are you, anyway?"

"You may call me Serizawa, miss."

"So, Mr Serizawa, what is it that you do?"

"I study Earth, and do my part in making sure that it is safe."

Something about this Serizawa was a bit off. Taking note, Yuka put herself on alert in case anything happens.

"You are troubled by how everyone now sees you as a monster."

"What? Who are you, really? How did you know?"

"I witnessed you transform a few days ago. Don't worry, I'm not here to blackmail you or anything, just to give some advice."

"What kind of advice?"

"Ultraman Hikari was framed by a Babalou Seijin in the past. At that time, Earth was just starting to accept him as a real Ultraman. His reputation ruined, Hikari was forced into hiding until the imposter came out. Hikari then exposed the Babalou and defeated him. At that point, the people of Earth had turned against him, but he proved his heart to them when he took an attack from the imposter that was aimed at a crowd of humans watching the fight and Earth accepted him once more. Sadly, Hikari has yet to forgive himself for the crimes he commited as Tsurugi."

"Now that you mentioned it, there are survivors from the Bogal Incident who are now campaigning against blue-coloured Ultras."

"Hikari told me that he had feared something like this could happen. It seems his fears have come true."

"What should I do then, Mr Serizawa? Thanks to that imposter, I've lost the trust of the people on Earth."

"Do what Hikari did. Prove that you are not what that imposter made you out to be," Serizawa replied.

"But how?" Yuka asked as she turned around, but Serizawa had disappeared.

"Prove myself? I can fight the imposter, but the crowd led by that Ichiro Koga... what can I do?" Yuka asked herself.

Just then, her telepathy picked up a hushed conversation coming from an abandoned warehouse near the park. Sensing something sinister about the conversation, she left the park and rushed over to the warehouse. Sneaking in, she sees Ichiro Koga talking to someone hidden in the shadows. She quickly took cover behind a wall and listened in on the conversation.

"Koga, we had a deal already. I frame Aegis and you get to slander her and GEAR more."

"Yeah, but I need you to do more. I must prove to the world that blue-coloured Ultramen are the bane of humans," Koga's voice could be heard saying.

"Well, you know what you're doing. As long as I get to conquer Earth, I will help you gladly."

"Deal?"

"Deal."

Yuka then heard footsteps leaving the place and the sound of a car driving off. She emerged from her hiding place, hoping to see who Koga had been talking to, only to find no one there. Startled, she turned around to leave, only to find herself face to face with a Zarab Seijin.

"Eh?" Yuka uttered before metal rings strapped themselves around her, pinning her arms to her sides as she fell to the ground. Zarab Seijin laughed as Yuka tried to struggle free from her restraints.

"It is pointless to escape, Aegis. Those rings can only be broken with salt water. And seeing that we're in the middle of the city, I doubt you will be able to free yourself in time. And here's something to sstop you from callnig for help," Zarab Seijin said as he grabbed a nearby roll of duct-tape and gagged Yuka before picking her up and dumping her inside a crate before covering her with tarps, tools and rubber tubings.

"Now, to complete my masterplan," Zarab Seijin said as he transformed himself into Aegis.

* * *

Ichiro Koga lead the rest of the protesters down the streets, chanting the words 'Blue is not Ultramen' over and over again, when the Fake Aegis appeared and began wrecking havoc once more.

"See, that blue witch has attacked again, and what is GEAR doing?" Koga said, to the cheers of the crowd.

He was proven wrong shortly, as the Storm Kestrel and the Storm Sparrow flew past, firing at the Fake Aegis.

"Koga, I think GEAR's on our side this time," one of the protesters said.

"Just trying to get on our good side. Nothing changes," Koga replied.

Meanwhile, in the Storm Sparrow, Ren and Kohaku watched the Fake Aegis smashed another building.

"Where's Jake?"

"He went looking for Yuka. She left Bastion Cove for some reason this morning and we haven't been able to contact her for a while."

"Dammit, we need them both in the Storm Owl," Ren said as he swerved to avoid a blow from from the Fake Aegis.

"Ayane went with Jake, I think," Kohaku added as she fired missiles at Fake Aegis.

* * *

The Lander Rhino drifted to a stop outside the warehouse where Yuka was. Somehow, Ayane claimed that there was a male voice telling her where to go, and Jake had relunctantly listened to her.

"She's in there," Ayane said to Jake as he got out of the Rhino.

"You sure about this?"

"Positive."

Jake, his weapon drawn, entered the warehouse, carefully making his way around. Ayane did the same, covering jake's back as he searched the place.

A muffled cry caught their attention. Locating the source of the voice, Ayane and Jake began throwing tools and other useless items aside before pullnig off the tarp to reveal Yuka, still bound and gagged by the metal rings.

"Salt water... These things only break with salt water," Yuka said when Ayane removed her gag.

"That shouldn't be hard," Jake replied, taking off his gloves to reveal sweaty palms. Forcing his fingers through, he managed to break the metal rings, freeing Yuka.

"Yuka, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. How did you manage to break it by your hands?"

"There is sodium chloride in our sweat. Technically, our sweat is salty," Ayane explained.

"The Fake Aegis is on the move. Thanks to Ayane, we were able to figure out what she really was- a Zarab Seijin."

"Zarab Seijin? That's right! I heard him talking to Koga. It seems they made some kind of deal to defame Aegis!"

"Are you sure about this?" Jake asked.

"Yes. But how did you identify it as a Zarab Seijin, Ayane?"

"There was an incident where a Zarab Seijin attacked Kobe in the form of Mebius. The fake Mebius had black under his eyes. The fake Aegis also had black under her eyes, which helped me identify Zarab Seijin."

"What about Koga? If Yuka is right..."

"We best go confront him now. He's on a bridge near here."

"Wait, let me rest a moment. I'll catch up with you guys later, when the time is right," Yuka said, still feeling giddy from her imprisonment due to the heat caused by Zarab Seijin trying to hide her. However, Jake gets the hidden meaning in her words and nodded.

"Okay, if you say so. Ayane, come on."

Meanwhile, Serizawa watched them from a distance.

* * *

"Look at that blue witch! I told you all she was only pretending to protect Earth!" Koga said to various news crew who had arrived on the scene to report the attack when Ayane and Jake arrived in the Lander Rhino.

"Ichiro Koga! We want to talk to you!" Jake shouted at Koga as he got out of the vehicle.

"Well, well, well, look who's finally arrived," Koga replied arrogantly.

"Keep it rolling," Jake said to a cameraman who had wanted to stop recording at the sight of them.

"So, what does Raptor Team think of this situation? Are you going to admit that Aegis is a threat?"

"The only threat here is you, Koga. Working with a hostile alien," Ayane said, staring daggers at Koga.

"W... What? Working with a hostile alien? So this is how it goes now? You would want to frame me?"

"We have witnesses who claimed to have seen you with an alien creature. You were plotting to defame Aegis."

"Ha, you can't scare me! There's Aegis right there, destroying the city, in front of your damned eyes. Can you still deny it?" Koga said, a smug look on his face.

At this point, a flash of light appeared, and another Aegis appeared.

"What! How did you get free!" the fake Aegis said.

The real Aegis replied by throwing a punch at the fake, knocking the fake to the ground.

"Ah, he failed?" Koga said.

"He what?" Jake asked, his Dual Shooter now drawn.

"I mean... er... Zarab... I mean, there were two Aegis?" Koga stammered.

"Did he just say Zarab?" one of the protesters asked.

"The Zarab Seijin? The one that always imitates Ultramen to attack Earth?" another said.

"What Zarab Seijin? You guys must have heard wrong," Koga said nervously.

"You are working with an alien that invades Earth with the intention of taking over it? You're worst than Tsurugi, Koga! All this just to prove your point?" Ayane said angrily.

The real Aegis kicked the fake one to the ground before firing two Arc Slicers at it, revealing Zarab Seijin's true appearance. Zarab Seijin got up, only to take a flying kick to his face from Aegis. Aegis then then rushed to attack him, only for Zarab Seijin to fire missiles from his fingers, knocking Aegis back.

"It really is Zarab Seijin!" the protesters said in unison. Everyone then turned to look at Koga, who was now slowly backing away. Meanwhile, Zarab Seijin stomped on Aegis, who finally caught his foot and tripped him before jumping onto his back and punching the back of his head.

"Arrest him?" Ayane asked.

"Yeah," Jake said as the two of them approached Koga. Quickly, Koga lunged at Ayane, disarming her and throwing her to the edge of the bridge. Aegis sees it happening, causing her to get distracted as Zarab Seijin threw her off and began strangling her.

"i know how to use this shit," Koga said as he turned the barrel to fire a Power Shot near Ayane, causing the bridge portion she was on to collapse.

"Ayane!" Jake shouted as she fell, unable to reach her in time as Aegis looked on in horror. Furious, he tackled the laughing Koga to the ground, picked him up and threw him onto the ground again before delivering blow after blow onto him. Meanwhile, Ayane falls to the ground below, knowing full well that the height will kill her on impact.

_This is it,_ she thought when she sees a man standing below the bridge.

At that moment, a blue flash of light appeared. The protesters shielded their eyes from it while Jake and Koga watched in surprise. Within moments, a blue-coloured Ultraman appeared, with Ayane safely in his palms. Ayane, looked up at her saviour, and then realized who he was.

"Hikari," she whispered.

Hikari nodded as he placed Ayane gently onto the bridge. Koga seized this moment to escape from Jake's grasp, only for Ayane to trip him, sending him sprawling to the ground. Jake jumped onto him and began punching him again.

Meanwhile, Hikari performs his Knight Kick at Zarab Seijin, knocking him off Aegis. As Zarab Seijin got up, Hikari assited Aegis to her feet.

"Interesting way of proving yourself to them," Hikari said.

"Ha, no wonder I felt something off. You're Serizawa," Aegis replied.

"Argh, you two are really a pain in the butt!" Zarab Seijin said as he charged at them both.

"Know your place," Hikari and Aegis said in unison as they brought Zarab Seijin down with a punch. Picking him up, the two blue Ultras hurled him to a side before delivering a side kick to him at the same time, sending him rolling. As Zarab Seijin got up, Aegis wrapped him up in her Thunder Whip.

"Ayeyeyeyeyeyeyeyeye!" a strange, funny scream came from Zarab Seijin as he was shocked by electricity. Unable to move, he could only watch as Hikari activates his Knight Blade before sending an energy blast at Zarab Seijin, cleanly cutting him into half vertically, causing Zarab Seijin to blow up.

"All right! They did it!" Ren screamed as Kohaku clapped in joy. Hideki and Dean exchanged fist bumps. Jake, on the other hand, was still happily punching away at Koga.

As Aegis and Hikari were about to fly off, they heard the cheers from the bridge. All the protesters have discarded their anti-blue signboards and were cheering for the two Ultras. Silently, both giants nodded in aknowledgement before flying off.

* * *

"You're coming with us, traitor," the police officer said to Koga, whose face was now bruised and clearly suffering from inflammation from the severe punching Jake had given him. Koga scowled as he was placed in the cop car.

Ayane watched from a bench as the other members of Raptor Team tried to shake off the reporters when a man sat down beside her.

"Close call just now, huh, Ayane," the man asked.

"Who are you?"

"Serizawa. Or maybe you can call me Ultraman Hikari," Serizawa said as he showed her his Knight Brace.

"You're... Hikari?"

"Yes. Aegis said you have a message for me."

"Yeah, about the incident ten years ago. I just... I want to say that... we've all... forgiven you for it," Ayane nervously said.

Serizawa smiled.

"I see. It is a memory I must always keep with me. It serves as a reminder of what hatred can lead to, and to prevent me from going down the path of Tsurugi again. But nevertheless, thank you, Ayane," he said as he slowly disappeared into light glitters, ascending towards the sky as a smiling Ayane watched on

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Profile: Alien Zarab

Origins: Ultraman (1966)

A shapeshifting alien that is known to imitate Ultramen to frame them, although it is obvious that they are not the real Ultramen, instead relying on the panic they cause to make people believe that Ultraman has gone rogue

Profile: Twin Tail

Origins: Return of Ultraman (Jack)

A rather weak monster that resembles a boot, with the head at the bottom. In the water, however, it proves to be extremely skilled in battle

Profile: Ultraman Hikari

Origins: Ultraman Mebius

Originally known as Hunter Knight Tsurugi, he came to Earth to seek vengeance on Bogal, causing some trouble with serious consequences, but ultimately redeemed himself and became an Ultraman again

* * *

**Chapter 8: Security Breach**

Yagami Eiji, the reporter who wrote the defeaming article about Aegis, is back to cause more trouble, this time helping Katsuima Junichi gain entrance into a GEAR facility in Hiroshima. Unfortunately, he sets off the device Junichi was trying to steal, resulting in a Bemstar invading Earth! As Raptor Team deals with the new threat, Eiji becomes an important factor in revealing the plot of the Verach Seijin.


	8. Chapter 8: Security Breach

**Chapter 8: Security Breach**

"Mr Yagami, what are your thoughts about the recent comments made by the public about your article regarding Ultrawoman Aegis?"

"Several medias around the world have been calling you a villain. What are your feelings about it?"

"Mr Yagami, do you have any personal issues with GEAR that prompted you to write such slanderous news reports about them and Aegis?"

Yagami Eiji, who had obtained a villainous status after his defaming article about Ultrawoman Aegis, found himself getting bombarded with questions from other reporters as he left his company's building. Pushing and shoving his way through, he reached his car and drove off, cursing under his breath. He wished he had never written that article, but he was in need of money to pay off his debts and the money he had received from Ichiro Koga was more than enough to settle them. But he never realized that Koga was working with a hostile alien. Worst, GEAR Japan had won a court case against him, forcing him to pay back a large sum of money that made him almost sell his house and car. Luckily, his boss and friends helped to cover some of the amount, otherwise he would have been living on the streets.

"Damn Koga, damn Aegis and damn the rest of GEAR," he said to himself.

"It seems we both have the same problem with GEAR."

Eiji almost crashed his car when he heard those words. Managing to stop his car by the side of the road, he turned his head around, only to see a blonde man with different eye colours sitting calmly in the backseat.

"Who are you? What are you doing in my car?"

"Katsuima Junichi. I am here with a proposal. I have heard about your skills in breaking into highly restricted areas to obtain the information you need for your news articles. I have need of your... skills."

"Oh yeah, well, next time knock on my house door or something. I almost went off the road because of you, asshole. What do you need me for?"

Junichi gave a small chuckle before pulling a picture out of the suitcase beside him.

"This device has gained the interest of my employer. Unfortunately, it is locked up inside one of GEAR Japan's facilities in Hiroshima."

Eiji looked at the picture. It shows a strange device shaped like a beacon, except it was full of wires and lights.

"You want me to steal it?"

"No, we want you to help us get inside the facility. According to my sources, this facility houses some of GEAR's dirty secrets. Those are for you to exploit. Leave the stealing of this device to me."

The sound of the words 'dirty secrets' were like music to his ears. Wanting some revenge on GEAR for what they did to him, Eiji took the picture from Junichi.

"It's a deal, Mr Katsuima."

Junichi merely gave a sinister smile.

* * *

"_Run, Aegis! They are breaking through!" An Ultraman shouted at Aegis as he and others tried to hold the door._

"_I can't leave you guys like this!" Aegis argued._

_The Ultramen were in a room with strange sapphire-like walls. In the center of the room was a strange device that looks like a portal, with strange energy swirling around the middle._

"_Aegis! Listen to your father! That portal leads to another dimension where you will be safe! Bring this spear with you! Now go!"_

_The Ultraman who had talked to her earlier grabbed the young Aegis and forced a strange spear into her hands before throwing her into the portal._

"_No! Father!" Aegis screamed as the portal disappeared while she hurtled through a strange tunnel full of lights and strange voices. Eventually, she loses conciousness, still gripping onto the spear tightly._..

* * *

"Yuka! Wakey-wakey," Kohaku's voice filled her head.

Yuka woke up with a start, appearing confused and slightly startled. She looked around, only to find herself in the cafeteria of the research facility.

"Can't believe you fell asleep here. I've been trying to wake you up for the past five minutes," Kohaku said as she placed a cup of malted milk in front of Yuka.

"Thanks, Kohaku."

"By the way, Yuka, are you sick or anything? You've been spacing out every now and then for the past few days."

"Nah, I'm fine. Just having some flashbacks on my past."

"I see, but take care of yourself. By the way, Captain Iketani just asked Toru and Jake to get you. I think he wants you to go to a research facility in Hiroshima with them. Anyway, you take care of yourself, hear?"

As Kohaku left the table to get another drink for herself, Yuka thought back to the dream she had before Kohaku woke her up.

_Was that dream... part of the memories I have lost?_ Yuka thought as she stared blankly at the cup.

* * *

"What did you just call me?" Ren's loud voice could be heard from the corridor, stopping Yuka and Kohaku in their tracks.

"I'm saying you can't just rush into battle without a proper plan. It's dangerous and risky" Hideki's voice was now heard, uncharacteristically harsh.

"So you're saying that I have to hover around and watch a 50-storey high monster trash the city?"

"What if you misfire and there are civilians down there?"

"I know freaking well what I'm capable of, stuntman! I don't need you telling me how to fight!"

"All you think about is blasting the opponent! Don't you ever think of aiming for its weak points and taking it down quickly so that it doesn't have to attack back?" Now Hideki was shouting too.

"This is bad," Kohaku said, her tone full of worry.

Just then, Jake appeared round the corner, holding what appears to be a toy Gomora in his hands. He heard the shouting match coming from the Ops Room and raised an eyebrow at the two girls quizzically.

"Mind telling me who started it?"

"Most likely Ren," Kohaku whispered.

"Jeez, him again. Ren! Get your ass out here, now!"

The automatic doors slide opened, and an angry Ren walked out the room and straight towards Jake, wondering what he wanted.

"What do you wa-ARGH!"

Everyone watched in suprise as the 'toy' Gomora leapt from Jake's arms and grabbed hold of Ren's face, pecking his head repeatedly with the sharp tooth at the tip of its snout.

"Keep pecking him, Gommy. Now I won't have to beat the crap out of him myself," Jake said as he dusted his hands mockingly and entered the Ops Room.

"What the hell is that?" Dean asked as he went over to pull the little Gomora off Ren's face.

"Oh, my brother at Hiroshima was working on something involving nanomachines and something made by GUYS Japan in the past. He said this was a byproduct he made out of boredom."

"It's... cute!" Ayane squealed as she plucked the little Gomora off Dean's hands and cuddle it. The little Gomora chirped happily as it wiggled its arms.

"It's a he, Ayane. You can keep him, if you don't mind. Anyway, you can call him Gommy," Jake said, grinning from ear to ear.

"You're not keeping it!" Ren shouted, a thin line of blood streaming down the middle of his face from Gommy's attack. Within moments, his face was kissing the floor, with Kohaku stepping on his head.

"I'll take him to the infirmary," Kohaku said, a deceptively gentle smile on her face as she dragged the unconscious Ren out the Ops Room by his legs while everyone stared in fear.

"Dean, you have a minute? This is getting bad to worst," Jake said.

As Jake and Dean left the Ops Room, Ayane played around with Gommy while Yuka and Toru discussed about it.

"You'll be heading to the Hiroshima Research Facility with me and Jake, right? You know, based on what Jake said as well as Gommy, I think I know why they want us there."

"What is it?"

"Capsule Monsters."

"Sorry, what?"

"GUYS Japan created portable creatures using nanotechnology to asist Mebius in battle when they were the main Earth Defense Organization. If I'm not wrong, some kind of minor fault happened that resulted a mini-Eleking being created, which the team adopted as a pet."

"So you're saying that the scientists at Hiroshima are trying to recreate this Capsule Monsters?"

"I think they are trying to improve the older version. To be honest, after GUYS was disbanded, the world forgot about how monsters once threatened the lives of thousands. When a Dinozaur suddenly landed on Earth on Christmas 2012, everyone was caught unawares. GEAR was quickly set up, but we ended up having to reverse engineer a lot of our technology at that time. Nowadays, our technology is much more advanced, such as our Dual Shooters and the SCAN system, but they are still based on older designs."

* * *

The Lander Rhino arrives at the Hiroshima GEAR Research Facility, where a young man wearing a GCI kevlar and a polo t-shirt stood at the entrance, seemingly awaiting for its arrival.

"Dammit, Rodney, can't you wait in the lab for us? You still have severe ezcema, right? You should not be under the sun."

"You know him, Jake?" Yuka asked.

"He's my older brother, Rodney," Jake replied.

"Ah, you're Yuka right? Jake told me about you. Nice to meet you. I'll shake hands with you if the skin on my hand wasn't peeling off like rain," Rodney replied.

Despite some resemblence to his brother, Rodney was completely different from Jake. Jake was slightly good-looking, having naturally straight hair with wispy fringe reaching his eyebrows. Rodney's skin condition made half his face looked baked, his short, messy hair and faint pimple scars not helping his appearance.

_How does one suffering from such severe skin problems work in the lab?_ Yuka wondered.

"Don't let his appearance fool you. That guy is one of the brightest minds in nanotechnology and mechanical science GEAR ever had. He wanted to be a zoologist, but suddenly developed severe ezcema, so he switched subjects," Toru said, having guessed Yuka's thoughts.

"You mean he's better than you?" Yuka asked, then realized that she had said it too loudly. She nervously looked at Jake and Rodney, but both of them simply grinned and waved it off.

"I am considered a genius, but he's approaching the status of prodigy. He's very smart, but kind of crazy. I've worked with him before. Saw him jumping up and down a cafeteria table trying to reach some cap hanging from a ceiling lamp."

"Did he get it?"

"Nope. Pulled the whole lamp down and broke the table with his fall. Spent two months in hospital. He transferred to us three months after Jake came over at the suggestion of Dr Kurosaki."

Yuka nodded, slightly bewildered, before turning around to watch Jake trying to stop his brother from trying to jump into a large canal beside the entrance gate, claiming to have seen a rare kind of fish in the water.

* * *

"All right, here we are," Rodney said as he guided Yuka, Jake and Toru into a large lab filled with strange machinery and half-complete creations.

"Wow, this place... it's huge!" Yuka exclaimed as she looked around the lab.

"Yep, we got weapon testings over there, and protection devices at the left. The chemical and biology section is in front, but for now we're heading to my lab," Rodney said as he approached a door, placed a card in the reader beside the door, and unlocked it.

Both Jake and Yuka blinked, and then became stupefied, at the condition of Rodney's lab. It has two rooms, one a bedroom and the other the lab. The bedroom section was a total mess. Papers lay around the table, clothes are simply left lying on a sofa, a broken mop laid beside the toilet, which was unbelivably clean given the state of the room, and the bed was simply a mattress on the floor with a pillow and a blanket with food stains on it.

"Rodney, how did you manage to create Gommy?" Toru asked.

"Yeah, there were so many nanomachiens left and the others did not know what to do with it, then i came across an article regarding GUYS Japan's Lim-Eleking, so i thought, why not? Took me about a week, but I managed to create the mini-Gomora i sent you," Rodney explained, seemingly proud of his creations.

Yuka glanced at Jake, who simply shrugged.

"Hey, Rodney, did you get us here to show off your little pets, or is there soemthing else?" Jake asked.

"Oh yeah, wait here," Roney said as he entered his lab. Jake, Yuka and Toru could hear things being thrown around inside. Rodney came out after fifteen minutes, holding a briefcase.

"What's that?" Toru asked.

"Capsuvolver. I believe you guys have heard of how GUYS Japan used Capsule monsters to assist Mebius? Well, we have been given the technology by their former scientists and developed a newer strand of Capsule Monsters. One of my colleagues managed to remove the time limit of these new Capsule Monsters, but as compensation, their power have been weakened."

Rodney opened the briefcase, revealing a flargun-revolver like gun inside along with five diferent colour capsules resembling shotgun shells.

"This is interesting. So we load the Capsule Monsters inside this gun and fire them out?" Toru asked as Yuka and Jake began loading the Capsules inside the Capsuvolver.

"Yep, and to recall them you just press the button at the back of the grip. To swap Capsule Monsters just turn the chamber. Also, if a Capsule Monster is recalled, you need to charge the energy for six hours vbefore they can be used again."

"Cool, bro. And you guys actually made five of them?" Jake said.

"Yep, but..."

Suddenly, Rodney's ape grin disappeared and for the first time since his introduction, Rodney appears normal, even serious.

"Rodney?"

"You guys know how General Izuki is complaining about Aegis? He actually commisioned the creation of the Capsule Monsters, not to assist Raptor Team, but to fight Aegis."

"Are you serious?" Yuka said, sounding quite loud suddenly and causing both Toru and Jake to be taken aback.

"I'm serious, although I took out the 'Destroy Aegis' comand and inputted 'Assist Aegis' command into all five of them. General Izuki will probably shoot me himself if he finds out what I did."

"That General Izuki! What the hell is wrong with him? Aegis have been protecting us and yet he has to come up with some stupid conspiracy idea regarding her! And why did you even help him create those weapons to fight against her, Rodney? I thought you would be more like your younger brother," Yuka growled as she paced around the room.

"Well, General Izuki rather trust a Guts Seijin then an Ultra," Toru joked, but that did not help soothe the situation as Rodney stood at one side of his room wondering what he should say.

* * *

Several military truck with GEAR Japan's logo on their sides stopped at the gate that leads to the Hiroshima research facility. Two GCI guards were busy inspecting the vehicles and their occupants before letting them through. As the last truck stopped outside the gate, the two guards, clearly worn out, approached it.

"Sorry, sir. Due to recent thefts in this facility, we are going to have to scan your entire vehicle. Please show me your visitor passes or GEAR Identity Card. Please understand that this is merely for security reasons."

"No problem," the driver said as he handed over a card. The guard looked at it before looking at the driver's face. He then gave a small smile as he returned the card to the driver.

"There seems to be no problem, sir. May I have a look at your passenger's pass?"

The driver nudged his passenger, who lazily produced a visitor pass from his pocket. The guard took the pass and went back into the guard post to scan it. Seeing no issues, he went back to the truck and returned the pass to the driver.

"Anything you find, Yoshi?" the guard asked his partner, who was scanning the vehicle with a device.

His partner shook his head and gave a thumbs-up sign, indicating that there was nothing wrong with the vehicle. The guard nodded and opened the gate for the truck to go through.

"Well, that was really easy," Junichi said as he removed the contact lenses that had been hiding his blue eye.

"Having resources pays off," Eiji replied.

"Huh, I guess you can be useful at times," Junichi said with a smirk.

Eiji parked the truck in between two warehouses before the two of them got off.

"Well, time to do a little exposing. You sure we should escape this place on our own?"

"Well, if you wish to get implicated for assisting in the theft of a dangerous equipment, otherwise, we're on our own," Junichi replied before sneaking off into one of the buildings.

"Weird guy, but at least I get to earn some money, and give GEAR the same humiliation I had to face," Eiji said to himself as he casually made his way into another building, his camera disguised as a bag.

Junichi watched Eiji entered one of the buildings near the warehouse before ducking into a room at the side of a warehouse. Closing and locking the door, he turned to face two lion-like humanoids, covered in swirling shadows and dark mist.

"Well, we're in. But what should we do about that guy?" Junichi asked.

"He has proven useful," Espian said.

"But he might be a liability. I say we get rid of him once we're done," Umbrager growled.

"True, true. But let's give him a chance. If you encounter him again, Junichi, kill him. Otherwise, he may live," Espian said with a chuckle.

"Interesting, although I plan to make sure that I do meet him again," Junichi replied, a disturbed grin appearing on his face.

* * *

"Still angry?" Yuka asked as she joined Jake on a balcony.

"Yeah, thanks for stressing my brother out."

"I didn't mean it. I just... lost my temper at what he said."

"It's not his fault. He even put his neck on the chopping board, going against General Izuki like that. Who knows what Izuki will do to him if he finds out that his anti-Aegis weapons are helping her instead?"

"Yeah, I guess... I hope he doesn't hate me for making it seem like he was the guilty party."

"Honestly speaking, the way he pushed us out his room, I don't think he will be speaking to us for a long time."

"Maybe I should go apologize to him."

"Don't bother, he'll brush it off soon. He's not the kind to bear grudges. Except for Ren, of course. He once accidentedly destroyed an experimental robot Rodney was working on. Rodney got so pissed that he sprayed a chemical he had developed on Ren, causing him to stink for a few days as well as suffer a severe itch."

"Well, Ren was asking for it. Speaking of which, what's his problem with Hideki?" Yuka asked.

Back at Bastion Cove, Ren, his forehead covered by a large plaster, sneezed.

* * *

Eiji snuck around the base, wondering where they kept the top secret files. For some reason, every office door was unlocked, and the guards did not even find anything suspicious about him. Approaching a door marked with a No Entry sign that has the words "Unauthorized Personnel" written on it, he silently opened the door and snuck in.

_Huh, for a facility with top secret researches going on, the security is quite bad, or I'm just that good_, Eiji thought as he walked around the huge lab carefully. He wondered if the fact that he was wearing a GCI uniform helped him remain undetected.

As Eiji turned a corner, he noticed a room marked with the warning colours of yellow and black. Curious, he waited for a sceintist to enter the password for the door, quickly sneaking into the room once the scientist entered.

"Woah," Eiji whispered as he realized that the room was filled with weapons and war vehicles. Thinking about how a few pictures of them could have the government of Japan questioning why GEAR had so many advanced weapons kept in secret, he began using his hidden camera to snap a few photos.

"Oh man, how will GEAR react when these pictures appear on the newspaper?" Eiji whispered to himself as he tried not to chuckle.

As he turned to leave, something caught Eiji's eye. Walking towards a desk, he noticed a large drawing of Aegis, with certain parts of her body marked by an arrow.

"What the hell? An arrow pointing towards her eyes, neck, back and Color Timer? And what is this? Oh shit..."

Eiji felt his hands trembling as he snapped two photos of the drawing, then quickly made for the exit.

* * *

"A device meant to lure monsters in and take control of their minds? These humans seem to enjoy pretending to be gods," Espian said as he and Umbrager assisted Junichi in moving the large machinery on a trolley.

"Imagine this device in the wrong hands, specifically, our hands at the moment," Umbrager replied, a faint trace of satisfaction in his voice.

"Maybe if you two would help to push more than talk, we can get out of here faster," Junichi said, panting slightly.

Grumbling, Espian and Umbrager ended their conversation. Just then, Eiji came running down the corner.

"Junichi! Junichi! GEAR plans to attack Aegis! I have their pla- what the? No... you work for aliens? What have I done?"

Eiji fell to the ground in fear. Espian and Umbrager looked at Junichi, who simply shrugged. Both of them advanced towards Eiji when a few guards, alerted by the commotion, came running down the hallway.

"What in the world? Sound the alarm! You three, stop right there!" One of the guards shouted as the rest pointed their weapons at the Verach Seijin.

Quickly, Espian and Umbrager attacked the guards, quickly defeating them using their superior strength and speed, leaving them all grovelling in pain or knocked out. However, the alarm had been tripped.

"What the hell's going on? Wha- are those shadowy lions?"

The three villains turned to face Jake, Yuka and Toru, their Dual Shooters drawn.

"Well, well, if it ain't Raptor Team," Junichi said.

"Junichi, you bastard, what are you doing here? And who are your friends?" Jake asked.

"We are the Verach Seijin. Our plan was to remain hidden until the moment to strike. But now that you have seen us, our plans are forfeit," Umbrager said menacingly.

"Let us put it is simple terms- our goal is to conquer your planet to replace the one we lost. Unfortunately, Aegis is in the way, so we have been putting a lot of our plans aside in order to get rid of her first," Espian added.

Jake and Toru replied by opening fire. All three of them dodged, with Junichi shoving Eiji out of the way. Eiji's head hit the beacon device they were trying to steal, activating it.

"Hey, hey, let them finish!" Junichi complained.

"What, you think we're in some television show? I'm not gonna wait for the bad guy to finish his speech, blondie," Toru snapped as he shot at them again.

Jake, however, had his attention of Yuka. As Toru covered them, he tended to Yuka, who had suddenly collapsed on ehr knees, clutching her head.

"Yuka? Yuka, you okay?"

"Verach... Verach... What's going on? Why do they sound so familiar?"

"Yuka, get a grip on yourself! We're in a fi-Argh!"

Distracted, Toru was thrown off his wheelchair by Espian, who had rushed at him. Jake turned and fired at him, only for Umbrager to send him flying into a wall with a single kick. Umbrager then grabbed Yuka by her neck and lifted her up.

"Ladies first," he snarled as he began choking her.

"Oh, how gentlemanly. But you guys are freaking noisy, and I'm in a really messed-up mood," a familiar voice said.

Everyone turned to see Rodney walking towards them, a fire extinguisher in his left hand and a steel pipe in his right.

"What's with that zombie appearance? And who are you?"

"Dr Rodney Wong, mister blondie with the weird pair of eyes. Just so you know, that device you were trolleying away, it's been activated. I'm shutting it down before any monsters get lured here, so kindly move aside before the great me beats the living crap out of you and your two clearly up-to-no-good alien buddies."

"Hahahahaha, what brave talk, this human! I don't really understand what you're trying to say though. Who do you think you are, anyway, talking to us like that with no fear?" Umbrager said confidently as he lunged at Rodney.

Immediately, Rodney sidestepped, causing Umbrager to miss, before delivering a whack to his back with the fire extinguisher and pummeling on the head with the pipe.

"Who do I think I am? I think I'm off my meds," Rodney relied, a crazed grin appearing on his face as he continued to talk in a nonsensical way.

Espian attacked, only to get busted in the face before Rodney roundhouse-kicked him through a door. Junichi moved forward, but Rodney attacked with the fire-extinguisher, spraying him all over and laughing like a madman before scoring a direct hit on his head.

Dodging another swing from Rodney's pipe, Junichi signalled for the two Verach Seijin to retreat. Rodney snorted as he watched the three of them leapt through a window before tending to the unconscious Eiji, while Jake helped Toru onto his wheelchair.

"Dammit, Yuka, what happened to you?" Jake asked.

"I don't know... Something just went through my head," Yuka said, apologetic over what happened.

"Hey, help me move Sleeping Ugly here," Rodney called out.

As Jake and a still-confused Yuka went to help him, the Raptor Team's receivers began going off.

"Toru here, what's going on?"

"A Bemstar is about to enter Earth! Its landing location has been calculated to be at the Hiroshima Research Facility, the place you guys are at!"

"Shit! The beacon! I was so engross in attacking those interlopers that I forgot!" Rodney said as he smashed the beacon with the pipe and extinguisher, destroying it in moments.

* * *

The Storm Kestrel and Sparrow arrived at the Hiroshima Research Facility as it is being evacuated, with the guards ushering the scientists and their families out of the buildings. Within moments, a bird-like star-shaped creature landed in the clearing behind the facility. Meanwhile, Jake and Yuka stationed themselves on the roof of the main building as Toru and Rodney made for the Lander Rhino.

"Storm Sparrow to Bastion Cove, Bemstar has landed. Permission to engage," Kohaku asked, having taken over as the pilot of the Storm Sparrow.

Captain Iketani had found out about Ren's violent behaviour after he returned from his son's medical check-up at a hospital in Tokyo and due to a lack of pilots, he had forced Ren to be the gunner for this mission instead of grounding him as he had intended.

"Permission granted, make sure Bemstar does not get near the facility," Captain Iketani replied through the intercom as Ayane typed furiously on the keyboard.

"It says in the database that Bemstar's horn can fire out an energy beam. Try to destroy it when possible," Ayane added.

"Roger that," Kohaku replied as she brought the Storm Sparrow closer to Bemstar, allowing Ren to fire at it.

Bemstar screeched as the laser bolts hit its back, causing it to turn around and swip at the Storm Sparrow. This allowed Hideki to bring the Storm Kestrel around.

"Targeting the horn," Dean said as he fired the Skybreaker Laser Cannon. The destructive beam hits Bemstar's head and back, but failed to hit the horn.

"Argh, curses!" Dean muttered as Hideki dodged an angry swipe from Bemstar.

As the two aircrafts continued attacking Bemstar, the frustrated space monster launched its horn blasts at them. While the Kestrel managed to dodge in time, the Sparrow was not so lucky as Kohaku dodged the blasts, only to get hit by one of Bemstar's wing hooks.

"The engine's been hit!" Ren said as the warning beeps sounded in the cockpit.

"I've lost control!" Kohaku shouted back as she struggled with the controls.

On the rooftop of the main building, Jake and Yuka watched the Sparrow plummet from the sky. Hideki tried to steer the Storm Kestrel towards the Sparrow in hopes of helping the Sparrow land safely, but Bemstar kept firing its horn blasts at the Kestrel.

"Yuka, do something!" Jake hissed at Yuka.

Yuka merely stared at the whole scene blankly, the scene where the Verach Seijin introduced themselves still running through her mind.

"Yuka!"

"What? Oh no!"

Snapping out of her trance, Yuka quickly transformed into Aegis, catching the Storm Sparrow and placing it safely on the ground, near the Lander Rhino.

"Woah! That's Aegis? Talk about seeing her live!" Rodney commented as he rushed towards the Storm Sparrow to assist.

Nodding at them, Aegis turned to face Bemstar. Screeching, Bemstar attacked by charging at Aegis, who does her standard charge-counter move on it, sending it sprawling to one side. Quickly getting up, Bemstar switches tactics and began swiping at her with it wing hooks.

Aegis nimbly dodged every swipe before delivering a kick into Bemstar's face, sending it stumbling backwards before delivering a chop to its head. She then picked up Bemstar and spinebuster it to the ground before rolling away for the Storm Kestrel to fire the Skybreker Laser Cannon at it again. This time, however, the attack hits Bemstar's stomach mouth, allowing Bemstar to absorb it. Bemstar got up while Aegis prepared for another round of combat.

"_We are the Verach Seijin."_

Aegis suddenly clutched her head, confused.

"_We are the Verach Seijin,"_ Espian's words rang through her mind.

Distracted, Aegis realized too late that Bemstar had fired its horn blasts at her. Taking the full brunt of the attack, she fell to the ground, where Bemstar jumped on her and relentlessly attack her with multiple swipes before delivering a kick to her head, sending her tumbling. As Aegis got up, she was grabbed by Bemstar, who proceeded to stuff her head into its second mouth!

Watching from the ground, Ren, Kohaku, Toru and Rodney wondered what they could do to help her.

"Dammit, if we don't do anything, Aegis is gonna suffocate or get absorbed! You both are scientists, right?" Kohaku said fearfully as she tugged at Rodney and Toru.

"Take this, you freaking bird bastard!" Ren screamed as he pulled the Pulse Launcher out of the Rhino and fired two rounds at Bemstar, but the attack did nothing to force Bemstar to release Aegis, whose Color Timer had begun blinking.

"Well, this blows. I wanted you guys to test this out, but it seems I have to do it myself," Rodney muttered as he pulled out the Capsuvolver and fired.

A white light shot out from the Capsuvolver and formed a gorilla monster with fangs and a muscular body. Roaring and beating its chest, it rushed towards Bemstar and pulled Aegis out of danger with so much force that Bemstar fell backwards.

"What is that thing?" Toru asked.

"The first of the Capsule Monsters I made. This is Gorakle, the brute strength gorilla monster with the agility of an Olympic gymnast," Rodney replied as he watched the battle.

Gorakle beats his chest and roared before charging Bemstar, pummelling it with punches and kicks and nimbly dodging any attack Bemstar made. This gave Aegis a chance to catch her breath before attacking Bemstar from behind, this time breaking off its horn. She then held it back, allowing Gorakle to deliver two punches to Bemstar.

As a dazed Bemstar spun around, Rodney recalled Gorakle, which disappeared back into the Capsuvolver, allowing Aegis to fire her Lumiante Shot at Bemstar. Despite having been badly weakened, Bemstar still managed to absorb the attack. Having been prepared for something like this to happen, Aegis fired her Arc Slicers at Bemstar as it tried to recover from absorbing such a powerful attack, severing both its wings before runing towards Bemstar and performing her Lightning Roundhouse on Bemstar's head, decapitating it instantly.

With the threat of Bemstar nullified, Aegis flew off into the sky.

* * *

"Wakey-wakey, mister Yagami," a voice said.

Blinking, Eiji got up, holding his head only to find a bandage around it. Turning his head left, he saw a man with peeling skin and three members of Raptor Team members beside him.

"What the- where am I?' Eiji asked.

"Bastion Cove's Infirmary. I'm Dr Rodney Wong, but I'm not the doctor that saves lives, I'm the one that designs shit that takes lives," Rodney replied bluntly.

"By right, you would have been charged with trespassing, but now we have to thank you for helping us discover two things."

"What did I help you with?"

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Captain Iketani Shintaro. These are my men, Dean Barrett and Akagi Hideki. Your camera had some rather interesting photos."

"Oh, yeah! I remember now! I was sneaking around your facility when I saw a room full of weapons that seemed to be designed to attack Ultrawoman Aegis!"

"Commissioned by our resident paranoid general, no less. Thanks to your photos, General Izuki Masaki is now in hot soup with the government of Japan as well as our remaining Board of Directors. He should know by now that it is not worth angering our Head Director," Captain Iketani said.

"Also, you have indirectly revealed a hidden enemy of Earth by agreeing to help Katsuima Junichi. Now we know that there is a species of alien known as Verach that are trying to conquer Earth," Dean added.

"I'm offering a deal, Mr Yagami. We have our differences once, but right now, we want you to be a part of the Scientific Research, Development and Investigation Division as an Investigator. All outstanding charges we had against you will be dropped and the fine you paid us wil be returned in full."

"I'll take it if I were you," Rodney whispered to Eiji, who was so surprised by the sudden opportunity to work for GEAr Japan that all he could do was nod.

"Good! As of right now, you're under my direct supervision! Come, Mr Yagami, we have lots of dirty secrets to share with you," Rodney said in a mad-scientist way as he pulled Eiji out of the bed and began showing him around.

"Sir, isn't Jake's brother a scientist?" Hideki asked as they watch the two leave the infirmary.

"Well, only Jake and I know about this. Officially, Rodney Wong is a scientist, but the Investigation Department considers him one of their own. If you've watched James Bond films, Rodney is the 'Q' of the Investigation Unit in the SRDID," Captain Iketani explained.

* * *

Yuka absent-mindedly stared out the window of the cafeteria at the sea, a glass of orange soda in front of her. As she took a sip from it, Jake joined her at the table.

"You all right? It's 10 pm already. You should get some rest," he said.

"I'm sorry about today, really."

"Why?"

"I made your brother feel guilty about General Izuki's plans, then zoned out during the fight with the Verach Seijin, almost got Ren and Kohaku killed and had to be saved by a Capsule Monster," Yuka said, sounding embarassed.

"What did the Verach Seijin say that made you behave like that?"

"I don't know. Remember back at the Garden, where I told you about my missing memories? When the Verach Seijin told us who they were, some sort of memory flashed through my mind. It's like, it's like I've fought them before."

"You mean the Verach Seijin is related to your memories?"

"Part of it. But it seems that if I were to get back all my memories, I must face them again someday," Yuka replied.

Grinning, Jake patted her shoulder.

"When that day comes, remember that I've got your back, okay?"

Yuka simpley smiled at Jake and nodded.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Profile: Bemstar

Origins: Return of Ultraman (Jack)

A star-shaped bird-like monster known as the first space monster fought by Jack. Originating from the Crab Head Nebula, it has a second mouth on its stomach that can absorb almost anything, even a Specium Ray from Ultraman Jack.

Profile: Gorakle

Origins: Original Creation

The first of the new Capsule Monsters that was reverse engineered from the original ones used by GUYS, this gorilla monster possesses superstrength and agility

* * *

Raptor Team Profile: Hidetate Yuka (秀盾 裕香)

Age: 21/Height: 165cm/Weight: 52kg

Hair: Chin-length hairstyle with fringe covering most of forehead, dark brown/Eyes: Brown

Score for the Three Tests: Combat 42, Flight 47, Rescue 47

Has a friendly personality and is a hard worker, although she has been caught sleeping on the job a number of times, which have been medically attributed to a lack of rest. She possesses good reflexes, excellent observation skills and is known to quickly improvise depending on the situation. Appears to be closer to Jake Wong and Tendou Ayane. Normally serves as gunner for Storm Owl.

Highly Classfied: Hidetate Yuka is the human identity of Ultrawoman Aegis. Currently, the only ones that know about her are Raptor Team member Jake Wong, GEAR Japan Head Director Saruda Sakamoto and Dr Kurosaki Kaoru of the SRDID.

* * *

**Chapter 9: To Be Number One**

Ren's increasing hostility towards Hideki has gotten all of Raptor Team worried, knowing full well that things are about to blow up. True enough, during the transporting of a non-hostile Gubira to the Garden, the two of them began fighting during the operation, nearly causing it to fail and resulting in Ren to be suspended. At the same time, the Verach Seijin awakens a dangerous monster, causing it to attack several power plants countrywide and troubling Raptor Team with its cunning and ability to disappear. Meanwhile, the suspended Ren encounters the mysterious monk who bumped into Yuka and Jake a few weeks ago.


	9. Chapter 9: To be Number One

**Chapter 9: To Be Number One**

"Well, this is a rare occassion," Captain Iketani commented as he took a sip of iced tea.

It was eight-thirty in the morning, and Captain Iketani found himself invited to Head Director Saruda's office for breakfast along with Dr Kurosaki. He had been wondering what was going on as he made his way to the office, which was in the administration building's top floor.

"Yes, Head Director, I agree. There must be something you want to tell us, right?" Dr Kurosaki asked as she poked an egg with her fork.

"Haha, looks like it's impossible to hide anything from you two, huh? Well, let me get straight to the point."

Head Director Saruda Sakamoto was an old man in his late 60s, usually seen with a stern expression which belies his gentle disposition. He is also quite tall and fit despite his age. Captain Iketani remembered how, during a minor competition held at the shooting range, Head Director Saruda won second place, losing to Jake by one point.

"It's about your men, Shintaro. Specifically, Mr Aojima."

_I knew it_, Captain Iketani thought.

"I'm pretty aware of that young man's issues, but if he is going to continue being so hostile to his fellow teammates, I'm afraid we might have to pull him off."

"Sir, he's the only one in my team who specializes in ground combat."

"Think about it, Shintaro. What if he lets his emotions get into his head in battle? I am aware that he is a skilled soldier, but Mr Wong does a better job at controlling the rest of the team. I believe you have made him the unofficial deputy captain, right?"

"Well, he refused it, but when Ren first came to our team, I sensed potential leadership in him-"

"You claim that he can be a leader, but what good is a leader who can't work with his team?"

Captain Iketani silently bowed his head, wondering what was going to happen.

"First it was Mr Wong, then Ms Hidetate, and now Mr Akagi. He had issues with them because of one thing- they outdid him at some point when they first arrived We need to eradicate his need to be the best."

"What? Head Director, you mean-"

"Find a way to make him work together with Mr Akagi without having to fight with him, or he's out of the team," Head Director Saruda said as he calmly drank from a cup of tea.

* * *

"What the heck is wrong with it?" Jake asked as he tried to get a cable hooked to the chain that was wrapped around one of Gubira's legs as the creature kept lifting its feet up to stare at it.

Two hours ago, this Gubira was found sleeping on the beach in Jiangshu, China. When it woke up, it proved to be non-hostile, even staring at the onlookers with curiousity. It had been playfully rolling around the beach, but many of the locals had become nervous, thus GEAR China had requested for GEAR Japan to assist in bringing the creature to the Garden.

"Given its weight, you think our Storm Birds can lift that thing up?" Hideki asked.

"What, you scared?" Ren taunted.

"I'm worried too," Jake said as he walked over to join Hideki and Dean, pausing just to smack Ren over the head and giving him a warning glare.

"Well, we've brought reinforcement," Dean said as he pointed at Miyuki, who was standing in front of Gubira with Yuka, both girls waving their hands at Gubira, trying to get its attention, only for Gubira to give a snort and start playing with the sand.

"Snowgon? What is she doing here?" Kohaku asked.

"In case the cables and hooks break and Gubira falls, at least she can try to catch it. Also, Yuka brought along the Capsuvolver, so it should be fine," Jake replied.

It took about an hour due to Gubira constantly moving around, but GEAR China's GCI soldiers were finally able to get the hooks into the chains wrapped around each of Gubira's legs.

"Allright, Miyuki! Time for you to shine," Yuka said to Miyuki cheerfully.

"It's been a while since I assumed by true form," Miyuki said as her eyes glow bright blue. Within moments, she had transformed back into Snowgon, wading into the sea.

"Thank you, guys!" Kohaku said as the cockpit of the Storm Sparrow slided close before all three Storm Birds lifted off as the GEAR China GCI soldiers waved goodbye. Soon, Gubira was airbourne, being lifted by three jets and a bird monster. Snowgon swam after them, making sure that Gubira doesn't fall.

"Hey, Jake, what if Gubira falls? I mean, it's a sea creature, right?" Yuka asked as she and Jake tried to balance the Storm Owl.

"Yeah, but from this height, it's like dropping it onto a concrete floor. Hey, guys, you doing okay?"

"It's really difficult to balance that creature between all four of us," Ren complained as he steadied the Storm Sparrow.

"I've lifted things in an aircraft before, but this is something new," Hideki added.

All of a sudden, Gubira began fidgetting again, causing all four of his carriers to struggle to maintain their balance.

"Dammit, it's moving around again!" Dean said as he held on to Hideki's seat.

"Can someone tell Snowgon to get ready for a big drop?"

"Now's not the time to attempt a joke, Kohaku..."

"Guys, just concentrate on balancing it! Dammit, why do I feel like the Storm Owl's dropping in height?"

True enough, Gubira's weight and fidgeting was causing the Storm Birds to lose altitude in at a slow but steady rate. Not only that, the cables supporting Gubira were starting to show signs of breaking.

"I think we better turn around and ask Phoenix Team," Hideki suggested.

"Who's Phoenix Team?" Yuka asked Jake.

"They're GEAR China's Anti-Monster Team. One of the newer teams that is still being set up," Jake replied, just as Ren's voice cut in.

"We don't need to return and ask for help! We can do it on our own! Besides, we're already halfway across."

"Gubira is too heavy-"

"Shut up, stunt pilot! We can do it on our own, and I mean it!"

"Godammit, Aojima! The cables are already close to snapping point!"

"Just pull up! What's so difficult?"

"Adding pressure to the cables will cause them to break even faster!"

"Oh, screw this! You guys wanna go for help, fine! I'll do this on my own!"

"What's he doing? Ren? Stop that, it's dangerous!" Hideki shouted.

The Storm Sparrow rose higher and higher, attempting to pull the weight of Gubira up on its own. Through their intercoms, everyone could hear Kohaku pleading with Ren to stop, but Ren shouted back that he can't lose to anyone, and he has no wish to be the one that lowers his head to ask for assistance.

"I thought my brother was the crazy one," Jake said as he stared at the Storm Sparrow incredulously.

"Those cables are not going to hold," Dean said through the intercom.

"Well, Ren does not seem to realize it," Yuka said.

A loud snap suddenly jolted everyone to attention. The cables connected to the Storm Sparrow had broke, and the sudden tension caused the Storm Owl's cable system to get damaged, preventing an emergency release. Dean quickly released the cables connected to the Storm Kestrel, causing Gubira to plummet, taking the Storm Owl with it. Panicking, Snowgon started waving her arms frantically as Gubira began to fall faster and faster.

"Shit, Jake and Yuka!" Hideki shouted as the others watched in horror.

Just as Gubira was about to land on Snowgon, a bright flash of light appeared and stopped Gubira's descent. Everyone breath a sigh of relief as Ultrawoman Aegis lifted Gubira up and began carrying it on her own. As she flew alongside them, the Storm Owl could be seen properly balanced on Gubira.

As the Storm Sparrow flew closer, Aegis glanced at it and shoke her head disapprovingly.

"I think she's talking to you, Ren," Kohaku said, her face flushed red with anger. She had been given a bad fright when she saw Gubira falling to the ocean with the Storm Owl still attached to it.

"Er... Jake? Yuka? You guys okay?" Ren nervously asked.

"Right now, I just want peace and quiet, so if Hideki or Ren decides to start something up, I'm not gonna care what happens to me. Either the Sparrow or the Kestrel goes down, understand?"

Jake has always stick true to his words, even his threats, thus everyone cringed at Jake's cold tone, especially Ren himself, who sudenly seemed to look both guilty and having his soul sucked out at the same time.

* * *

Ren stood in front of Captain Iketani and Head Director Saruda nervously. After they dropped off Gubira and Snowgon on the Garden, he had been notified by Ayane that the Captain wanted to see him. Now, he was standing in the Head Director's ofice, facing them both.

Captain Iketani closed his eyes for a moment, then opened and stared right at Ren.

"Aojima Rennosuke," he began, causing Ren to grimace. The only time Captain Iketani calls him by his full name is when he has seriously pissed him off.

"Let me summarize everything that happened this morning. You could not listen to someone with more experience in airlifting than you, you acted on your own and nearly caused the operation to fail, and you placed all the lives of your teammates in danger without thinking. Let me ask you something: is it that difficult to ask someone else for aid?"

Ren did not bring his head up. Clearing his throat, Captain Iketani continued.

"Had you requested some aid from GEAR China or SEA, everything would have gone without a hitch. Those may have been heavy-lift cables we're using, but everything has a limit. And right now, we have reached our limits. You refuse to work with Akagi Hideki, you pushed on with your own decisions even though you have understood the situation. When you first came, I thought you would be a good leader, and you were, until Jake arrived, and with the recent addition of Yuka and Hideki, you've completely proven me wrong."

Ren kept quiet as Captain Iketani lectured him.

"I hate to do this, but you're suspended."

"Wh-what?"

"Two months, unless you prove that you are able to outgrow your childish, self-perceived rivalry with Hideki, understand? Now hand over your pass and Dual Shooter," Captain Iketani said as he extended his hands.

Quietly, Ren handed over both items and bowed to them both before leaving the room.

* * *

Yuka, Jake, Ayane and Toru were eating lunch when a clerk from the Administration Building approached them.

"Raptor Team?" he asked.

"Yeah, that's us. Is something wrong?" Toru replied as he turned to talk to the clerk.

"Oh, nothing, I was jsut told to pass these papers to you guys. Sorry for having disturbed your lunch."

"Nah, it's okay. Thanks," Toru said.

As the clerk left, Toru began flipping the papers, which had been stapled together, looking through the pages quickly.

"What are those papers for?" Yuka asked.

"Nothing, just a list of accidents, finances, recent punishments, new arrivals and- what the hell?"

"What?"

Toru turned the paper around and showed them what had caused his surprise. Written under the Recent Punishments Section, on the first line, was 'Aojima Rennosuke – Two Months Suspension: Failure to Act Properly In the Field, Resulting in Risk of Teammates' Safety'.

"You gotta be kidding me, two months suspension?" Jake asked as he stared at the paper.

"Wait, Ren's name is actually Rennosuke?" Yuka asked.

"Yeah, we call him Ren for short. I'll explain later. But what is the meaning of this?" Jake replied.

"Well, the Gubira incident earlier today must have pissed off the higer-ups," Ayane said.

"Damn, this sucks. We're now one soldier short, and of all soldiers, the one that knows how to charge through enemy fire without getting hit or killed," Jake groaned as he sat back down.

* * *

Junichi walked around a hilly area, a device in his hand. As he walked, the device emits a beeping noise at a constant rate. As he approached an area near the edge of the forest, the device suddenly began making a screeching noise.

"Ah, there it is," Junichi said as he beckoned to Umbrager and Espian.

Both Verach Seijin began conjuring dark energy into their hands and fired two beams of energy at the area where Junichi was standing. As the beams approached, Junichi simply walked away casually. The beams hit the hill, inches behind him.

"Well, where is it?" Umbrager asked.

Almsot as a reply to his question, a roar was heard, and all of a sudden, there was movement in the trees. As the two Verach Seijin strained their eyes, they noticed the trees began to appear as though they were underwater. Junichi joined them, still holding the device.

"That thing's invisible?" Espian asked.

"Yes, it is. I wonder how would Aegis and Raptor Team are going to fight something they can't see," Junichi replied.

"Is that its only ability? Once they get used to its invisibility, it's no longer effective," Umbrager said.

"It's cunning, and has a taste for electricity."

The three villains watch as the invisible monster disappeared into the forest.

* * *

Ren, dressed in a black and grey jacket, green t-shirt and jeans, was walking out of the Administration Building when the Lander Wolf pulled up beside him. The window rolled down, revealing Yuka and Jake.

"Hey guys," Ren said, his voice so normal that it sent shivers down the two of them.

_What the hell? He usually shouts instead of talk. What happened to him?_ Yuka thought

_It's almost like he just came back from a funeral!_ Jake thought.

"Hey, what are you doing, staring at me like that?" Ren said, this time in his normal loud voice.

"Oh, er... just thought we give you a lift," Jake replied as he pointed to the back seat using his thumb.

Soon, the Lander Wolf was cruising down a highway, with the sea at one side and a small town on the other side. As Jake focused on the road, Yuka attempted to make small talk with a surprisingly quiet Ren.

"So, what are you going to do with these two months?"

"I don't know."

"No plans?"

"None. Maybe I'll go help out my uncle on the wharf. My family would probably be wondering why I got suspended. My brother would be pissed if he was still alive."

"What happened to your brother?"

"When Mebius first arrived on Earth, a Dinozaur suddenly landed in the middle fo the city and began rampaging around," Jake suddenly said.

"Yeah, and the original GUYS Crew were destroyed when they tried to attack Dinozaur before it entered Earth. The only survivor was one Ryu Aihara, who became one of the members of the new GUYS Crew and eventually took over as the team captain."

"What's that got to do with Ren's brother?"

"I went to find out what happened to my brother after the Dinozaur attack. Ryu did not want to meet my family, so the new Captain told us what happened. It seems my brother... he was the first casualty," Ren explained.

* * *

"Here we are," Jake said as he stopped the Lander Wolf outside an apartment building.

It was already night by the time the Lander Wolf reached Ren's neighbourhood. Ren silently got out and waved goodbye before entering it. Yuka and Jake watched as the lights of a room on the second floor of the building lit up.

"He lives there alone?" Yuka asked.

"Yeah. I've been in there before. It's a bit like mine, except mine's smaller and only consist of a kitchen, a toilet and a living room. And my enighbourhood's more lively than this place."

"True enough, it's creepy here," Yuka commented as she heard the soudns of dogs barking.

"No idea why this place is so quiet. Even in the day it's like a graveyard, and you don't see a lot of people walknig around."

"So, his brother died in a fight against Dinozaur, right? I wonder if that might have something to do with Ren's behaviour?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, when I first came in, he complained about the fact that I did not even go through the selection process, and I was told that I outdid him in the Flight and Rescue Test. Then Hideki came in, completely owning him in all three categories. I also heard you had problems with him when you first came."

"I had higher critical hits on my targets than him. But I only beat him in Rescue."

"Anyway, he seems to want to be the best, and... you know, I think he can't stand being beaten."

"Hm... now that you mentioned it, I remember how he would tell us about his brother always telling him to be the best, no matter what."

"You think his brother's death may have affected the way he perceived the term 'be the best'?"

"Who knows? I don't really want to get involved in his family matters though. Anyway, let's get out of here before we start seeing ghosts and vampires. This place is a horror movie set," Jake replied as he started the engine and drove back onto the main road.

* * *

"Yagami Eiji took these pictures earlier this morning," Captain Iketani said as he placed a number of pictures on the table after breakfast.

"What the... isn't that one of the main power plants in Osaka?" Dean asked as he looked at one of them.

"Yes, that used to be Kurodamano Power Plant. Now, it's completely destroyed,. Luckily there were no casualties. The problem was that while the workers saw the cables and buildings getting damaged, they could not see what was attacking them."

"Could it be an invisible alien creature?" Hideki asked.

"No. According to SCAN Database, there are two monsters that feed on electricity and have the ability to become invisible, Neronga and Eledortoise," Toru explained as he brought both monsters onto the screen.

"It's got to be one of them," Jake said.

"But how do we track it? Will it attack again?"

"I'm not sure about that, Yuka, but judging by the footprints, the Investigation Department believes that it is headed towards the Rokutora Dam. So right now, I want you, Jake, Dean, Kohaku and Hideki to go other and prepare for an attack. Also, the weather right now is so horrible that all aircrafts have been grounded, so take the Lander Wolf and Rhino there."

* * *

_Morning_

"_Ren, what happened? Why are you crying in one corner?"_

_Fifteen-year-old Ren looked up, only to see his older brother, Kyousuke standing beside him, his usual gentle smile on his face._

"_Aniki, I did not make it to the top three in class. I got fifth."_

"_Isn't that good enough? You've done your best, right?"_

"_I can't just do my best, I want to be the best! Just like how you are one of the best pilots in GUYS!"_

"_Haha, silly Ren. I'm not the best pilot in GUYS, Captain Serizawa is, as well as his gunner, Ryu."_

"_Ryu-nii-san? I remember him, he came to our house once!"_

"_Yes, that's him. He got to be Captain's gunner not because he is the best, but he does all that he can, that's why he-"_

_The Memory Display in Kyousuke's chest pocket began beeping._

"_Aojima speaking."_

"_Kyousuke, sorry to cut your off short, but a Dinozaur is headed for Earth right now and has a high chance of landing in Japan. I need you to come bak and get ready. I've informed Ryu already, you should be able to meet up with him at the park near your residence."_

"_On it, Captain. Aojima out. Hey, I'm going to work now, Ren. I'll talk to you when I come back, okay."_

_With that, Ryunosuke left the house. Ren watched from the window as Kyousuke met up with Ryu and the both of them began runing back to Phoenix Nest._

_Night_

"_We are very sorry for your loss, Mr and Mrs Aojima," Captain Sakomizu is heard saying as he tried to console the grieving couple._

_The Aojimas got worried when Kyousuke did not return. When a car marked with the symbol of GUYS pulled up in front of their house, they suspected that something bad had happened._

_Ren silently stood outside the room, tears flowing down his face as he slowly accepted the harsh truth that his brother was dead. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Ryu walking down the corridor, his face crestfallen and his steps heavy. Noticing Ren by the room, he silently walked over, ruffled his head a bit._

"_Kyousuke was... the first casualty. He was one of my greater friends in GUYS. I'm... I'm really sorry, I couldn't do anything," Ryu said before quickly walking away, his shoulders suddenly shuddering._

"_Ren, come, it's time to leave," his mother said as she and his father opened the door of the room they were in._

"_I need to use the toilet."_

"_All right, be quick."_

_Ren walked quickly into one of the toilets, sat down inside one of the cubicles and took out a photo of his brother, taking a picture with him when the family went on a holiday in Greece. Tears splattered on the photo._

"_Yeah, I heard they were all killed."_

"_Only Ryu-san survived. Lucky fellow."_

_Ren stopped crying as he eavesdrop on the conversation outside._

"_It's not luck, it's skill."_

"_I heard him saying that Captain Serizawa forcefully ejected him to prevent him from dying."_

"_Of course the Captain would do that. Ryu's the best of the group. No way he would let him die like that."_

_He survived because he was the best? The best..., Ren thought as he tightened his grip on the photo._

* * *

"I'm sorry, Kyousuke, but... I guess I was right. There's no way I can just do my best. I have to be the best, or I might end up like you," Ren silently said as he looked at the photo in his hands, thinking about that fateful day ten years ago when the first Dinozaur landed on Earth.

"You must be the best? What kind of stupid words are those? Are you saying that other people cannot be at their best?"

Ren jumped up and turned, only to see a monk wearing a rice hat standing behind him.

"Damn you! You scared me! Who are you?"

"That's not important. I want to know why you are sitting in the park looking at that photo and letting the rain drench you all over?"

"None of your business," Ren snapped before turning around to leave.

"Your comrades are heading into danger."

"What are you talking about?"

"They are now heading to Rokutora Dam, attempting to fight a monster they can't even see, yet here you are, weeping over the past!"

"I'm on suspension, I don't have to care what they are doing."

"Really? Hah, a self-serving brat like you, to think that they are concerned about your wellbeing after they found out about your suspension, even that pilot. You don't deserve such good comrades!"

"Shut up! I'll kill you!" Ren roared as he lunged at the monk.

Within seconds, the monk was holding him facefirst to the ground, his arm in a painful hold.

"You listen up now, brat! To think that you must be the best is the wrong way to do things! It makes you selfish, it makes you easily jealous, it makes you lose your ability to trust others because you do not want them to beat you! In this world, we all win and lose at the same time. Look at your comrades, Aojima Rennosuke! They may have beaten you at some point, but not once have they claimed to be 'the best'. Instead, they try their hardest, just like your brother! This is why they did better than you!"

With those words, the monk released Ren, who rolled over and stared at the monk, completely stunned by how much he knows.

"How did you know?"

"I have been observing you and your comrades, Rennosuke. I wanted to know that I can trust this planet to your team and Aegis. A few weeks ago, I met your teammates Hidetate Yuka and Jake Wong. They are such likable people, yet you had issues with them both in the past," the monk said as he began to glow.

Ren shielded his eyes for a moment, and when he put his hand down, he saw to his shock an Ultra, at human size, standing at where the monk was standing.

"You're.. Leo?"

Ultraman Leo simply nodded.

"My home planet was destroyed by an enemy years ago, leaving only me and my brother Astra alive. Planet Earth is my new home now, and I want to see how Aegis and Raptor Team work to defend it. So far, I have been impressed, except you," Leo said.

"That's why you appear to me?"

"You had a serious flaw in your way of thinking, and I could sense how you are not able to get along with certain teammates out of envy. I understand how your brother's death made you think this way, but you must not continue down this road if you truly wish to be the best. I can't force you to be friends with people you do not like, but I recommend that you cherish the fact that you were able to fight alongside them."

Ren silently stared at Leo before giving a slight nod as he began to realize why Leo had approached him.

"Do not become like me, having lost all my teamates without having time to appreciate them," Leo said before disappearing, leaving Ren staring at the sky in awe as the rain got heavier.

* * *

"Shit, we're too late!" Dean cursed as the Lander Wolf and Rhino skidded to a halt in front of the Rokutora Dam, which was now such a burning inferno that the heavy rain was not able to put it out.

"Dammit, what if the dam burst?" Jake asked.

"Toru, Ayane, how's the dam holding?" Kohaku radioed back to Bastion Cove, where Toru and Ayane are accessing the damage done to the dam.

"The dam's holding pretty well. The damage is minimal, the fire is only affecting the top of the dam, and the dam is still operational, but we better find a way to prevent anymore damage," Ayane replied, as Gommy sat beside her computer obediantly.

"SCAN's readings are being affected because of the storm, I can't really get a reading on what is attacking the dam, but I have confirmed that all personnel at the dam have been safely evacuated, although there are a number of injured," Toru added.

"We're on our own then," Hideki replied as he glanced at the burning dam.

"All right, I don't want to take any chances. According to Toru, no one is left on the dam, but I remember passing a small town on our way here. Yuka, Jake, go to the town and try to evacuate the towspeople. Dean, Kohaku, with me in the Lander Wolf. We'll try to identify the attacker," Hideki said as he got into the Lander Wolf.

"On it," Jake replied as he caught the Blitz Laser Sniper Rifle Dean had taken out from the trunk of the Lander Wolf and tossed to him before joining Yuka in the Lander Rhino and driving towards the town.

As the Lander Rhino drove off, Dean drove the lander Wolf towards the dam.

"There! I can see it! The raindrops are giving it away!" Kohaku shouted as she pointed at something invisible that was making the background look watery standing over the dam.

"I'll try to hit it," Hideki said as he rolled down the window of the Lander Wolf and fired a few rounds from his Dual Shooters.

The invisible monster was hit a few times, causing it to lose its camouflage. Within moments, Eledortoise was revealed as it roared in anger and turned its attention to the Lander Wolf.

"Okay, run circles around it," Hideki said to Dean, who immediately drove around Eledortoise, causing it to turn left and right trying to stomp the Lander Wolf.

"Too slow, you overgrown tortoise," Dean muttered as he zipped around Eledortoise's legs, finally causing it to trip and fall.

"Hideki, the town's been evacuated, we're heading back!" Jake's voice came through the intercom.

"Roger that, come back and hel- Argh!"

Eledortoise had suddenly fired two beams of energy from its tail and mouth, causing the Lander Wolf to be sent rolling.

"Hideki!"

"I'm fine, shit... Dean's out cold, and we're trapped," Hideki replied, the Lander Wolf's wheels now facing the sky.

"Hang on, we're coming!"

"No! Don't try to help us! Eledortoise is heading abck to the dam! Stop it at all cost!"

* * *

Inside the lander Rhino, Jake and Yuka stared at each other.

"What do we do?"

"You go help them, I'll hold off Eledortoise," Yuka replied as she summoned the Shield Bracers and transformed into Aegis.

"Woah shit, not in the car!" Jake yelled in horror, thinking that Aegis was going to go full size, but was surprised when she appeared in human size.

"Idiot, I can alter my size," Aegis said playfully as she prodded his head before flying out of the Lander Rhino in a ball of light, growing to full size and landing on Eledortoise.

With some difficulty, Aegis managed to pick up Eledortoise and hurl it away from the dam before jumping on it again. She punched its shell, only to end up hurting her own hand before Eledortoise throws her off.

_And I called Jake an idiot, I can't believe I forgot that Eledortoise is a tortoise monster_, Aegis thought, feeling embarassed as she picked herself up and grappled with Eledortoise again. Meanwhile, Jake had managed to get Dean, Hideki and Kohaku out of the lander Wolf and was helping Kohaku tend to Dean's injuries.

"Dammit, I goofed."

"We all goof at times, Hideki. Now help me apply some pressure to Dean's head."

Aegis finally lets go of Eledortoise, only to fire her Lumiante Shot at it. To everyone's shock, Eledortoise absorbed the Lumiante Shot before hitting an unprepared Aegis with its heat beams several times, sending her toppling. It then went invisible again, just as the rain got heavier.

"Crap, it's gotten heavier! I can't really see Eledortoise now," Kohaku said as she squinted and tried to prevent the rainwater from getting into her eyes.

True enough, earlier on they had been using the rain to locate Eledortoise, but with the rain getting heavier and the sky darker, it was no longer possible to locate Eledortoise without it firing its heat beams.

"I hear a motorbike," Dean said groggily as he stirred back into counciousness.

"Motorbike? Oh, yeah, I can hear it too," Jake replied as the sound of a bike engine grew louder and louder.

A Harley-Davidson screeched to a halt in front of them. The biker got off and removed his helmet, revealing himself to be Ren.

"Ren, what are you doing here?"

"Never mind, what are we up against?"

"Eledortoise, and Aegis is losing," Hideki said as he pointed to Aegis getting hit by something unseen, her Color Timer blinking.

"Huh, an invisible monster, right? Where's the Lander Rhino?"

"What are you planning to do? And how did you locate us?" Jake ask as Ren went inside the back of the Rhino and pulled out the Pulse Launcher.

"I talked to Captain Iketani, but he won't let me help, so Toru and Ayane sneaked the information to me. Where's Eledortoise's weak point?"

"Its legs? Aegis couldn't really make a dent on its back earlier."

"Try to hit the neck. It might stun it long enough for Aegis to counterattack," Hideki said.

Ren looked at him for a moment before turning back to the Pulse Launcher.

"Can you see it in the rain?"

"No, but I can see it through heat vision. You guys really ought to start testing the Pulse Launcher out. Ha, I see it."

"Wait, don't fire now!" Hideki suddenly said.

"What? Then when?"

"Wait for it... wait for it..." Hideki simply replied as he looked at the heat vision sscreen on the Pulse Launcher.

"Hey, Jake, wouldn't Ren had fired now? Why is he listening to Hideki?" Kohaku asked, finding the whole thing weird.

"Beats me. I've never seen him actually complying with other people's decisions, especially people he does not like," Jake answered, feeling puzzled by Ren's new attitude.

"Now!"

Ren fired off the Pulse Launcher, sending a sphere of energy shooting through the rain and hitting something unseen behind Aegis. Aegis turned around just in time to see Eledortoise flipping backwards onto its back and being unable to get back on its feet, its neck showing a severe wound. As Eledortoise helplessly flailed its legs, Aegis stepped back and fired off five Arc Slicers continuously at it. The final Arc Slicer struck Eledortoise right in the head, kiling it instantly.

* * *

"Well done, all of you. You were able to prevent the dam from taking too much damage and managed to outwit a monster that has the ability to hide itself from view. I must say I'm proud of all of you," Captain Iketani said to the team back at Bastion Cove.

"Sir, I would like to requst something," Yuka said all of a sudden.

"What is it?"

"Please lift Ren's suspension. Without him we would not have been able to defeat Eledortoise."

"I can't just lif-"

"Sir, I'm with lifting his suspension," Hideki said as he stepped forward.

"Me too," Jake added.

"Sir, please, let him come back. Raptor Team isn't complete without him," Ayane said.

Captain Iketani looked around the room, seeing the conviction in everyone's eyes and gave a big smile.

"In that case, I'll be happy to announce Aojima Rennosuke's suspension completed!"

Ren, who had been sitting on one of the chairs in the room, gave a small smile as everyone cheered.

"Anyways, I think it's time I elected a deputy team leader. Who do you think should take this role?"

"I vote Hideki," Ren said, all of a sudden.

"Well, that was... unexpected." Captain Iketani said, giving him a quizzical look.

"Hideki has better combat judgement than any of us here. That's my sole reason," Ren said.

"What about Jake? He is able to help control most of us," Yuka asked.

"Yeah, but i don't have the field expereince like Ren or Hideki. They're both soldiers who have fought in the frontlines before, so I rather they be leading us," Jake replied, grinning at Yuka.

"Well, if there aren't anymore objections, I hope you will help lead your fellow comrades, Hideki."

"I'll... I'll try my best, sir."

As Captain Iketani left the Ops Room, everyone began talking about Hideki's promotion.

"Deputy captain, dude. Guess we'll be reporting to you when we are sent into the field."

"Do we have to salute you?"

Ren approached Hideki, who turned to face him.

"Er... i guess I have to thank you for getting me promoted, Ren."

"Nah, I jsut felt that you're the most suitable for this job."

Both men started grinning and then clasped their hands, signifying a new friendship being created...

At least for a moment, when they suddenly started pushing down on each other's hand.

"I don't believe this, standing arm wrestling? That does it," Jake said as he threw his hands in the air, walked towards the two and proceeded to flip them both onto the ground, much to the amusement of the others.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Profile: Gubira

Origins: Ultraman (1966)

A sea creature with a powerful drill for a horn capable of returning an opponent's energy attack , this particular Gubira is playful and friendly, unlike the one that appeared and fought Ultraman in 1966.

Profile: Eledortoise

Origins: Return of Ultraman

An alien monster that resembles a tortoise, it feeds on electricity and can go invisible like Neronga. The first eledortoise was befriended by a boy, but ultimately went berserk and Jack was forced to fight and kill it.

* * *

Raptor Team Profile: Aojima Rennosuke "Ren" (青島 蓮之助 "蓮")

Age: 25/Height: 178cm/Weight: 63kg

Hair: Short to medium length styled messy hair, dyed brown/Eyes: Brown

Score for the Three Tests: Combat 48, Flight 46, Rescue 37

The team's good-looking but hot-headed combat specialist. While respected and well-liked by most people in Bastion Cove, he is also often the target for practical jokes. His brother was a member of the original GUYS Crew who was killed when a Dinozaur first appeared on Earth. easily gets envious of anyone that does better than him, but as of late he has been improving on his attitude. Currently dating fellow Raptor Team member Moriumi Kohaku. Normally serves as the pilot of the Storm Sparrow

* * *

**Chapter 10: The Welcome to GEAR SEA**

Yuka and the Wong Siblings respond to a call for help from GEAR SEA, Jake's former unit where he served as a GCI soldier, to assist in an investigation regarding a recent outbreak of swimmers getting poisoned by an unknown monster in the ocean. Unfortunately, this meant that Jake must once again face his nemesis, Charlie Tan, the man who sabotaged his entry test to Cascade Team, the anti-monster unit of GEAR SEA. Meanwhile, Yuka learns more about Jake from Rodney, and finds herself feeling some strange connection to the sniper.


	10. Chapter 10: Welcome to GEAR SEA

**Chapter 10: Welcome to GEAR SEA**

**Sorry about the title change, but I decided to write**** more about Jake in a future chapter. Chapter 9 have been slightly modified because of this.**

"Jake, call for you!" Ayane called out to Jake as he entered the Ops Room with Yuka.

"From who?"

"Captain Nguyen of Cascade Team."

"Shit... Gimme the phone," Jake grumbled as he took the receiver from Ayane as Gommy nibbled on a piece of sausage.

"Jake, nice to hear from you again! How's life in Japan?"

"Lot's of monsters, sir. What about you?"

"Not too good either. Listen, I might need to borrow you back to GEAR SEA for a while. I'll explain when you return."

"What's going on, sir? You sound kind of worried."

"Yes, I'm worried. Something is going on with the beaches in Singapore. Swimmers turning up uncouncious with strange burn marks on their bodies. We had seven deaths already and we still can't find out why."

"Jake, who's calling you?" Captain Iketani called out, startling Jake.

"Oh, Captain! I think you might want to talk to Captain Nguyen of Cascade Team," Jake said as he let Captain Iketani took over.

"Iketani here. Yes it's me, Nguyen. What? Well, there isn't a lot of activities happening in Japan anyway. Oh? You need both? Okay, no problem, I'll send them to you on Wednesday," Captain Iketani said before putting the phone down.

"Toru, notify Rodney to pack up and return to Bastion Cove from Hiroshima immediately. Jake, select someone to go back to Singapore with you. You're on loan to Cascade Team for two weeks."

Jake groaned, but mutered yes to Captian Iketani before leaving the Ops Room.

"What's with his bad mood?" Yuka asked.

"There's someone in Cascade Team he really does not want to meet. They'll probably come to blows if they see each other again," Ayane replied as she fed Gommy another piece of sausage.

* * *

"Please explain to me why we can't take one of the GCI transport planes. Instead you have to squeeze me into the cargo hold of the Storm Owl," Rodney complained as the Storm Owl flew across the Phillipines Sea.

"Too bad for you Roderick," Jake replied in a joking way back.

"I told you not to use my full name! If you want to use it, you should have told them in Chapter 8!"

Jake muted the radio with a humorous grin on his face.

"Roderick?" Yuka asked.

"Yuka, once all this is settled, I'm gonna tell you all the nicknames of the people that work in GEAR Japan, okay?"

"Sure, why not, and what did Rodney mean by Chapter 8?"

"No idea. He sprouts this kind of nonsense every now and then."

After a while, Yuka pointed out something in the sea.

"Jake! What is that?"

A huge aircraft carrier sailed across the sea, larger than the ones used by the United States Navy.

"That's our landing zone. Yuka, this is the Leviathan, the operating base of GEAR SEA," Jake introduced as he landed the Storm Owl on the Leviathan.

As Jake and Yuka got out of the cockpit, Rodney emerged from the cargo hold, clearly unhappy.

"So what is it that old man Nguyen wants us back so badly," Rodney asked.

"Beats me," Jake replied.

"Jake! Rodney! You guys are back!" a voice shouted.

"Jamal! Sophia! Damn, I missed you both!" Jake said as he greeted his old friends who came running to welcome him.

"Friends of yours?"

"Yes, Yuka. Let me introduce you to them. This is Jamal. We've been buddies since primary school, about the same as elementary school in Japan. And the girl is Sophia Lee, she's from Malaysia, and the first friend I made in GEAR SEA. Both of them are from Cascade Team, the anti-monster unit of GEAR SEA."

"Nice to meet you," Yuka said as she exchanged greetings with both of Jake's old friends. Yuka noticed that the two of them were wearing the same uniform as hers, the only difference was the sleeves and collars being cyan while Raptor Team's were dark green. Their circular insignia resembles a waterfall flowing down several steps

"Does Charlie knows I'm coming?"Jake asked, a dark look on his face suddenly.

"Well... yeah, I think he knows," Jamal replied uncomfortably.

"Well, well, if it isn't the great Jake Shigeru Wong. I thought you ran off to die in Japan," an arrogant voice suddenly spoke.

Yuka turned around to see a rather good-looking man, but with a brat-like face, swaggering towards them.

"Great, Charlie Tan" Jake whispered.

"So, might I know why you're back?"

"Fought a few monsters in Japan, all of them failed to kill me, so I came back to see what could," Jake replied in a deadpan way, although Yuka could see some anger in his eyes.

"Seems fate isn't on my side. And who is this pretty lady beside you?"

Before Yuka could react, Charlie had his arms around her shoulders.

"Must have been tough, having a guy like that working with you," Charlie said.

"Your Japanese is bad, and I don't know you well enough for you to do this to me," Yuka curtly replied in English, pushing his arm off her.

"Hey, come on, I'm trying to be friendly..."

"Back off her, Charlie. I didn't come back to start another fight," Jake warned as he placed himself between Yuka and Charlie.

"Hey, Charlie, knock it off," Jamal said, only for Charlie to glare at him.

"Don't forget who I am, Jamal. Keep your mouth shut."

"What?" Jake asked.

"Er... not long after you left, Charlie became Cascade Team's deputy captain," Sophia explained, clearly unhappy about it.

"See this, Jake? Be on your best behaviour this two weeks or Raptor Team might be losing someone, seeing as to how I can just recommend your removal," Charlie said as he flashed the deputy captain insignia of Cascade Team that was sewn into his right sleeve at Jake.

"It's been two years, asshole. You're still unhappy about how I broke your nose?"

"Well, you did that only because you were caught cheating in the simulation test while I scored the highest."

"What's going on?"

Rodney had finally unloaded all the stuff he needed from the Storm Owl and had joined the group. At the sight of Rodney, Charlie took a few steps back.

"I'm headed back to the bridge," he said angrily before walking off, clearly cursing to himself.

"Charlie Tan? I missed that guy," Rodney said, an evil grin appearing on his face.

"Hey, Jake, why did that Charlie get so nervous when Rodney approached?" Yuka whispered.

"I'll explain later," Jake replied.

* * *

"Oh, gross, what the hell is up with those wounds?"

Yuka and the Wong Siblings are in the Officer's Room with Captain Nguyen and Admiral Daniel del Santos, looknig through the pictures of the victims.

"All of it happened around Singapore, which is the reason why we are heading there right now," Admiral del Santos, who is also director of GEAR SEA, explained.

"Any clues as to what kind of creature is responsible?" Yuka asked.

"None that we know of. We have checked SCAN Database for suspects. There are about twenty, at the moment."

"What, Bostang? Look, that giant manta ray is not even poisonous," Rodney said as he pointed at a picture of Bostang on the screen.

"You might want to speak to your operator about gathering the right information, Admiral," Jake said.

"Well, the pictures are not helping much. I need to look at the victims physically," Rodney said as a GCI soldier barged into the room.

"Sorry for my rudeness, sir, but we have another report of a mass poisoning from a beach in Singapore!"

"What! Dispatch the Seagulls at once. See if we can catch the perpetrator, or at least identify it. Jake, you and your friend should go too."

"I'll stand-by at the hospital," Rodney said as he left the bridge.

Within minutes, the Storm Owl was airbourne, with Cascade Team's Dive Seagulls and Dive Pelican following behind.

"Jake, the Seagulls look a bit weird," Yuka said as she looked at the blue and white fighters that resembles the Storm Sparrow, only smaller and wider. The Dive Pelican was rather large, however.

"Yeah, they were designed after the GUYS Seawinger of GUYS Ocean. They're jets that can switch into a submersible mode."

"That sounds cool. Why don't we have them?"

"Because we have the Archelon. Besides, GEAR SEA is also in charge of guarding the oceans, thats why they have a triple-sized aircraft carrier as their base."

"Seems they have a lot of responsibi- Woah!"

Jake had suddenly pulled the Storm Owl up, narrowly avoiding a Dive Seagull that had sped past them without warning, startling Jake.

"Ha, you still suck at flying, Jake! Maybe you shou-"

Jake disconnected Charlie from the radio, clearly annoyed, before connecting to Jamal.

"Jamal, you're in the Dive Pelican, right?"

"Yeah, with Sophia and two other guys. Why?"

"If Charlie tries to kill me again, there's going to be a misfiring incident."

"Oh, I hope that happens."

"Glad to see we're of the same mind," Jake replied before hanging up.

"That Charlie really gets into you. What happened?" Yuka asked.

"We... had a history. He sabotaged my entry test into Cascade Team. It happened two week before I got transferred to GEAR Japan."

"Why didn't you report it to the higher-ups?"

"Because he's the nephew of a government official in Singapore. Everyone's scared of offending him."

"Because his uncle is a minister? Then he's abusing his position."

"Yeah. Nobody wants to complain to his uncle, so his uncle does not know what's his nephew doing. But Rodney happened to be someone who doesn't care who you are, which is why Charlie is afraid of him."

Yuka stared at Jake for a moment, then silently placed her hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, let's just get this done and return to Bastion Cove, then we won't have to see him for a long time."

"Good idea," Jake replied, slightly blustered by her action.

Somewhere inside Yuka, she felt a strange sense of warmth as she watched the Storm Owl began to land.

* * *

"I-i-i-i-it just h-h-h-h-happened, th-th-th-the p-p-pain! It-it-it just happ-p-p-pened!" The swimmer stuttered in pain as paramedics loaded him into an ambulance.

The swimmer was just one out of six victims who had just been poisoned by the mysterious attacker. One of them had already died from his wounds. Jake, Yuka and the rest of Cascade Team watched as the ambulances left. The police and GCI soldiers of GEAR SEA had cordoned off the beaches.

"Looks like Rodney's gonna be busy," Jake muttered.

"Any idea on what might be causing these poisonings?" Yuka asked.

"I remember reading an article in SCAN Database about a fish monster named Gesura which is able to secrete some kind of poison from its fins, but those wounds... they remind me of jellyfish stings."

"So what do we do now?"

"Not much we can do. We've finished asking questions around. Guess we're heading back."

As Jake and Yuka walked back to the Storm Owl, Yuka noticed Sophia gazing sadly at Jake. Noticing Yuka staring at her, Sophia quickly looked away.

Strange, thought Yuka.

* * *

_Two days later_

"I've identified the monster, people," Rodney said as Cascade Team gathered in the bridge of the Leviathan.

"What is it?"

"Take a look at this picture, people."

"What is that? Looks like a jellyfish," Yuka commented at the picture, which shows a jellyfish-like creature with four stalks on its body, a single eye at the center and a mass of thread like tentacles underneath.

"This creature is known as Jeribolas, first sighted off the coast of Hawaii during UGM's time, not long after the Ultraman known as 80 left our planet. The United States Navy were able to destroy the first Jeribolas, but it had killed seventeen people before being discovered. I have sent samples of the poison taken from the victims to GEAR USA, and they have confirmed the poison as belonging to Jeribolas."

"Dr Wong, what are the effects of this creature's poison?"

"Extreme pain, followed by constant shivering and high fever, but that's only if you had minor contact with its poison. The deceased were exposed to the poison for too long, resulting in failure of respiratory system and internal bleeding."

"But is there anyway we can fight this creature?"

"No weakness has been discovered yet. From what I heard, it took more than half of the US Navy and Air Force to take down the first one. The Leviathan may be well-equipped with weaponry, but if we are going to kill this Jeribolas, we might need help from the rest of the ASEAN countries' naval forces."

"What do you think? Will this plan work?" Jamal asked as he stepped onto the deck with Jake.

"I don't know. I thought you guys were the ones with underwater combat experience."

"Yeah, but-"

"Jamal, there's thirty-one members in Cascade Team. Besides, the acid poison from Jeribolas won't damage the Dive Seagulls. My brother is rarely wrong."

"Speaking of which, what's Rodney doing now?"

"He requested for a workable sample of the original Jeribolas from GEAR USA. I think he's trying to find a weakness Jeribolas possess. Oh, how coincidental," Jake said as a helicopter bearing the logo of GEAR USA landed on the deck of the Leviathan.

As two GCI soldiers took the icebox from the helicopter, Jamal changes the topic.

"You know Sophia still has some regrets about, you know…"

"Yeah, I remember. I thought I told her that all is forgiven."

"Maybe she needs time to forgive herself."

"I don't really know. I tried to talk to her earlier but she kept the conversation short."

* * *

"What do you mean she has a weird sadness in her eyes?" Rodney said as he looked at a piece of the original Jeribolas through a microscope.

The Jeribolas sample had just been delivered to the Leviathan via helicopter, earlier than expected, so Rodney had gone straight to work immediately, only to find Yuka volunteering to help him instead.

"I saw it clearly. Don't say I'm seeing things or something," Yuka replied.

"If you're seeing things then my skin is perfectly shiny and healthy looking."

"That's funny."

"It's not meant to be."

"Sorry."

Rodney took a deep breath and moved the Jeribolas sample to a large table in the lab, silently cutting them into pieces and placing them seperately.

"Sophia was in a relationship with my brother when we were both serving in GEAR SEA."

"What? No kidding?"

"No kidding. Things were going well at first, until Mr Charlie Tan decided to interfere."

"Expected of a slimy guy like him. So what happened?"

"Ol'Charlie had power, money and looks. It was easy to get people to turn on their closest ones when you are very good at influencing, and the fact that you have a relative in the government who is able to throw his power around without the rest of the government knowing. Charlie and Jake did not see eye to eye the moment they met. Charlie saw Jake as a foil to him, while Jake saw Charlie as a bully."

"Let me guess, Charlie managed to break up Jake and Sophia, right?"

"Through rumours and bribery. jake quickly lost a lot of friends. One day, I came upon Charlie threatening Jake so i crushed his toes with a good stomp."

"Crush his toes? Oh my… No wonder Charlie was so scared of you!"

"He damn well be! Anyway, I told him if anything happens again I will crush his balls. So the only thing he can do now is talk smack about Jake."

"What a jerk. But Sophia…"

"She realized what had happened, tried to get back with Jake, but both of us were packing up for Japan by then. Jake left first, so she couldn't talk to him anymore. From what I heard from Jamal, she's claiming that eaving Jake was the most dumb thing she ever did."

"And Charlie? What did he do after you guys left?"

"Claimed he chased us away for good. Gets himself promoted."

"You mean he controls Cascade Team?"

"No. Captain Nguyen has relatives in the Vietnam government, so Charlie can't do anything to him. He got us both sent to GEAR Japan to protect us from Charlie."

"Why? Charlie tried to kill you both or something?"

"He sabotaged Jake's simulation test by messing with the machine he was using, destroying his chance to join Cascade Team. His uncle made sure the technicians did not dare to say anything when they found out. We still managed to find out in the end and that was the last straw. We beat the living hell out of him. His uncle called the police in on us, paid people to make it look like we tried to kill Charlie instead of simply kicking him around, but Captain Nguyen stepped in and got us out of trouble. We barely avoided jail."

"So the rumours were true, then. The reason why both of you were transferred to GEAR Japan… All because of one man... Poor Jake, I didn't know he had such a bad time here."

"Heh, I had worst. Wanna hear what my fellow scientists said to me when I was still working here? Hey, Zombie Rodney! How's your skin doing? Rot-ney, Rottingrick, the Decaying Man. Now a poisonous monster is swimming around the coast and they're all on their knees worshipping me as a pagan. Dumbasses, all of them."

Yuka tried not to laugh at the way Rodney said those words, but Rodney was far from laughing. Giving a sigh, he continued.

"Honestly speaking, Jake suffered the most, actually. From secondary school all the way to now, he's alwasys been a target. Backstabbed by people he thought were friends, having his girl snatched away by some rich douchebag, I'm surprised he kept silent for so long."

"I… don't know what to say."

"Hey, Yuka, do me a favour. You and Jake are buddies, right? Take care of him, will you?"

"What? But… What the… Why are you asking me something like this all of a sudden? I thought they only say this line in movies, when the main character's friend is dying and tells him to take care of his family!"

"Well, he can definitely take care of himself. I'm just worried that all that stress will one day make him snap and end up like me, slightly unstable but completely sane when calm."

_You're more mad scientist then slightly unstable_, thought Yuka.

"Okay, I'll see what I can do," she said.

* * *

"What's going on?" Yuka asked as she entered the command deck of the leviathan, just below the bridge.

"Deputy Captain Charlie giving out orders," Jamal replied, clearly unenthusiastic about the while thing.

"We've tracked Jeribolas to this location, where it has not moved. I have good reason to believe that it is resting or asleep. Team A will engage it and lure it to our killzone where Teams B and C will unload everything they have on it. Understood?"

"Sir, what are the risks-"

"The plan will work perfectly, do not worry. Just listen to my orders and everything will be fine."

"But what if-"

"I'm in charge here, and I'm telling you nothing will go wrong," Charlie growled as he grabbed the Cascade Team member by the collar and shoved him back.

"Sir, the last time you said that, Miguel and Yang got killed by Gesura," Sophia said as she helped the younger man up.

"You guys fought a Gesura before?" Yuka asked Jamal, who nodded.

"Didn't kill it, we managed to chase it away though. Charlie went after it and shot an eye out for fun."

Jamal's words ended up increasing Yuka's dislike of Charlie, who was now staring at Sophia, stunned.

"Sophia, you will remember who has more authority here," he finally said.

"You won't have it if Captain Nguyen comes down here. You're throwing your weight around because Jake and Rodney aren't around."

"Sophia, are you trying to pick a fight? Oh, wait, I think I know. It's about Jake Wong, right? Don't forget- you left him on your own accord."

"And you're standing here with a rank because you uncle works for the government."

"What! You-" Charlie snarled as he tried to slap her, only for his arm to be caught.

Turning around, Charlie is shocked to see Jake behind him, holding his arm.

"You will treat the lady with respect," Jake said as he released Charlie.

"Ha, protecting the one who broke your heart! How chivalric," Charlie said, but wisely chose to stop there when he noticed Jake's eyes were uncharacteristically furious.

"Dismiss. Commence operation in two hours. Someone get me GEAR Japan's number," Charlie said as he headed down the gangway, whispering the second part of his sentence to a nearby GCI soldier.

As everyone dispersed, Yuka silently watched Jake and Sophia talk to each other at a corner.

"Thank you, Jake."

"Anytime. Can't believe Charlie tried to hit you."

"Yeah… You know, this reminds me of the time you stop my father from hitting me."

"Yeah, that's how we first met, right?"

Both of them fell silent for a moment.

"Hey, Jake, I'm… I'm really-"

"Don't say it, Sophia. I already told you, I've put that behind me."

"I know, but…"

"Sophia, if you can't forgive yourself, things are going to be very difficult for the rest of your life."

Both of them look at each other in an awkward way. Jake then gave a small smile to Sophia, who looked away, slightly blushing.

Watching the whole thing play out, Yuka felt a strange feeling inside her, like as though she was uncomfortable seeing them together.

* * *

"So what are we doing exactly?" Yuka asked as she and Jake got into the Storm Owl while Rodney squeezed back into the cargo hold along with all his equipment.

"I don't know what Charlie pulled, but we're off the case."

"What? We're going back?"

"Yeah. It seems Captain Nguyen and Admiral del Santos were called away from the Leviathan to attend some emergency meeting regarding the Verach Seijin we encountered at the Hiroshima Research Facility."

"So Charlie, being deputy captain, was left in charge and the first thing he did was chase us away."

"Exactly, Yuka."

"Sorry to cut in, but I just found something really bad," Rodney's voice came in through the intercom.

"What is it, Rodney?"

"I've been conducting some experiments on the Jeribolas sample, trying to discover its weakness, but for some damn reason, nothing works on it. Acid doesn't eat at it, hammers just rebound and bullets don't even penetrate it. I fired a rocket launcher at the sample, but it wasn't even damaged."

"But you managed to cut it into pieces just now!"

"True, but can you find something large enough to cut through the actual Jeribolas? Worst come to worst, we might have to bring Gubira out of the Garden to deal with Jeribolas, since he got that drilling nose."

"But how did the US Navy took down the first Jeribolas?"

"I've checked with GEAR USA about Jeribolas, Yuka. It seems the US Navy drove it away from Honolulu all the way to Alaska, where they killed it. They said it started to freeze up literally."

"Freeze up literally? As in turning into ice?"

"The date where the first Jeribolas was encountered was June 26th 1981, around three months after Ultraman 80 left Earth. It was kileld on November 22nd 1981, at Alaska."

"Jeribolas is weak to cold?"

"Yeah, but GEAR SEA has no freezing combat equipment. The Storm Owl is the only aircraft around here equpiied with freezing weapons."

"We have to turn back! Cascade Team is going to be defeated if we do not help!" Yuka said.

"Yeah," Jake replied as he turned the Storm Owl around and head back to the Leviathan.

* * *

"A Leader to B and C Leaders. Contact sighted. Perparing to lure," the leader of Team A said as he and the rest closed in with their Dive Seagulls, firing away and getting its attention.

"Okay, we got it! Lets' get out of here!"

Team A quickly headed towards the surface, with Jeribolas hot in pursuit. As they neared the surface, the Dive Seagulls and Pelican switched from sub-mode to flight mode, exiting the ocean to join the rest of their comrades.

As Jeribolas emerged, Cascade Team opened fire, unloading their arsenal on Jeribolas. While their lasers were able to hurt the giant jellyfish monster, half their missiles bounced off Jeribolas and fell into the sea.

"What?" Jamal uttered as he and his gunner stared in shock.

Seizing the chance, Jeribolas began a counter attack, creating bolas-shaped energy around its tentacles and hurlnig them at Cascade Team. A Dive Pelican went down as its left wing is destroyed, but Jeribolas paid no heed to the pilots getting out of their downed aircraft, instead firing away at the rest, taking down another Dive Pelican and three Dive Seagulls. Finally, it stopped attacking and started heading for land.

"Damit, it's headed for the beach!" A pilot shouted.

"Go after it! I want that jellyfish dead!" Charlie ordered as he chased after it in his Dive Seagull, with Sophia as his gunner.

"What about the rest of our people?" Sophia asked.

"All I care about right now is stopping that jellyfish," Charlie replied.

As Charlie took off after Jeribolas, Jamal and the rest landed in the sea to help the downed pilots, leaving Charlie and Sophia to take on Jeribolas themselves.

As Charlie approached, he fired at Jeribolas, catching its attention. The jellyfish monster hurled some of its energy bolas attack at the Dive Seagull.

"Dodge! Dodge!" Sophia shouted at Charlie, who tried to swerve, only to get struck by one of the attacks.

"Dammit!"

As the Dive Seagull plummet, Sophia and Charlie tried to eject.

"Charlie, my eject button won't work!"

"Too bad," he replied as he ejected himself.

Sophia could only look at the deputy captain, stunned by his cowardice. She tried to reach for the emergency release, which was located at the pilot's seat, used in case the seat ejection does not work, but it was too far from her reach.

"This is it," she said to herself.

Then the plummet stopped.

Surprised, Sophia looked up, only to see a blue and silver giantess carrying the Dive Seagull.

"Sophia? Come in! You all right?" Jake's voice crackled through the radio.

"I… I'm fine… I thought you guys left?"

"Yeah, but that was Charlie wanting us to leave, not captain Nguyen, so the higher-ups at GEAR Japan decided that I can choose to stay. Anyway, I want you to meet Ultrawoman Aegis."

"So this is Aegis?"

"In the flesh."

Aegis placed the Dive Seagull safely on the ground before turning towards Jeribolas. Charging at it, Aegis shoulder tackled it, sending it tumbling to the ground. Jeribolas got up, only to take two Arc Slicers from Aegis, causing it to fall down again. Undeterred, Jeribolas hurled some of its energy bolas attack at Aegis, who cartwheeled out of the way.

"For a lump of jelly, it moves pretty fast. Hey, Rodney, how are we going to defeat it?"

"Sorry, I'm still trying to take in the fact that Yuka just transformed into a fifteen-storey-high alien giant in front of my eyes," Rodney replied.

"No time for jokes, big brother."

"Never any time for jokes, little brother. Anyway, Yuka, I mean Aegis, need to keep her distance from Jeribolas if she does not want to get poisoned."

"Let's keep it that way. Jamal, come in. How's the rescue going?"

"All downed pilots have some minor poisoning from Jeribolas. We're sending them to the hospital right now. I'm the only backup you have right now."

"Okay, get over here. Might need your help dealing with the jellyfish."

Aegis leapt out of the way as Jeribolas attempted to smack her with its tentacles, creating multiple Reflect Guards and throwing them around Jeribolas, literally sealing it in a box. As Jeribolas hits the Reflect Guards uselessly, Aegis looked over to the Storm Owl, which was now joined by Jama's Dive Seagull.

"Wow! Is that Aegis?"

"Yeah, she is. All right, we need to force Jeribolas back into the sea. If we destroy it now, its poison will leak all over the city. Rodney's developed an antidote for its poison which we will be shooting into the sea once its done. Rodney, do it now!"

Opening a hatch in the cargo hold of the Storm Owl, Rodney fired the Capsuvolver. A red light appeared and transformed into a phoenix-like creature.

"Kevanix, let's do this!" Rodney said as he and Jamal got ready to open fire.

Kevanix unleashed her sonic scream, so powerful that it shattered the Reflect Shields and pushed Jeribolas back. Jake fired at Jeribolas, with Jamal doing the same thing. As Jeribolas was pushed back into the sea, Kevanix sprayed fire at it, forcing it to fully retreat back into the water. Just before it sank, Jake fired three Frost Missiles from the Storm Owl at it, causing parts of jeribolas to turn into ice.

"Kevanix, come back!" Rodney said as he recalled Kevanix and fired the Capsuvolver again. This time, a blue light shot out and transformed into a shark-like creature.

"Evisark! Go into the water and freeze the jellyfish solid!" Rodney called out.

Evisark dived into the sea, swimming towards Jeribolas and nimbly avoiding the energy bolas attack Jeribolas threw at him before firing an ice beam at the monster, freezing it solid. Aegis, who had dived in after Evisark, fired her Lumiante Shot at Jeribolas the moment it becomes frozen, shattering Jeribolas into pieces. A sickly, green ooze began to form from where Jeribolas was destroyed, causing Aegis to carry Evisark and fly out of the water.

"They're out of the danger zone! Jake, fire the antidote, now!" Rodney said as he recalled Evisark.

Taking aim at the greenish area of the sea, Jake fired the antidote missile. White power blast out from the missile as it detonated right above the water surface, falling into the sea and causing a lot of foam to be formed. Within moments, the poison left by Jeribolas' destruction was completely cleared.

"Another job well done," Jake said to himself silently as he watched Aegis flew into the sky.

* * *

"Man, I like that new ornament on your sleeves," Jake said as he joined Yuka, Rodney and Sophia in congratulating Jamal's recent promotion to Deputy Captain of Cascade Team.

"Thanks, Jake. But what happened to Charlie?"

"Damn you all," Charlie said as he approached them.

"So you got promoted and I'm a grunt now. Don't think this makes you better than me."

"At least he did not abandon his teammates. I nearly died because of you," Sophia replied.

"You shut the-" Charlie roared as he reached out for Sophia, only to get punched by Jake, sending him falling.

"Go ahead, punch me! My uncle will see that you and your brother finally get arrested!" Charlie shouted at Jake.

"I'm afraid he can't do that," a voice said.

A grey-eyed man in a brown suit entered the deck, flanked by four military police and Captain Nguyen.

"Jake, look! He has grey eyes like you," Yuka said.

"You two scoundrels! Why didn't you make a visit to your mother when you came back? I only found out about your return from Captain Nguyen!"

"D… Dad?!" Jake and Rodney said in unison.

"Your father is the Minister of Defense of Singapore?" Jamal asked in shock.

Charlie watched the whole scene in shock as the Minister of Defense walked towards him.

"Charlie Tan, your uncle had been charged with corruption. And I have personally come here to have you arrested as well, for risking the lives of your teammates and abandoning them, as well as abuse of authority."

"Not only that, Charlie. I went to talk with the technicians in charge of running the simulation for the entry test to Cascade Team, and it seems Jake's simulation test had been tampered with. For some reason, they suddenly remembered you comnig in and out of the simulation control room, so, you know, it is suspicious," Captain nguyen added, a small grin appearing on his face.

"Is it about Machine 3? I don't know what you are talking about!"

"How did you know he was using Machine 3? You were not even around that day," Captain Nguyen replied.

"Men, take him away," he Minister of Defense said. The military police immediately seized Charlie and dragged him off.

"Dad, how's Mom? And Meredith?" Jake asked, feeling awkward.

"They're doing fine, especially Meredith. She just passed her college exams with flying colours."

"That's… great."

"She misses you and Roderick dearly. If you two stop being workaholics and come back once in a while to visit her and Mom it will be great. Here, something she made for both of you," the Minister said gruffly as he took out two keychains from his pokcet, giving one to Rodney and another one to Jake.

"Meredith made them herself, so take good care of them," he said before turning around and walking off with Captain Nguyen.

* * *

"Leaving already?" Sophia asked Yuka as they watch the Wong brothers came back from visiting their mother and sister.

"Yeah, we've been here for three days, and a Gesura had emerged near Bastion Cove, so we need to deal with it quick."

"Hey, I've noticed you and Jake are quite close."

"He's a good friend. Kind and friendly, although he snaps once in a while and tries to kill a very annoying person in our team."

"He is. To be honest, I really regretted leaving him. Not a lot of woman deserves him nowadays."

Sophia gazed at Jake, who was helping to load things into the Storm Owl with Rodney, a sad smile on her face.

"I don't know if anyone told you what happened between me and Jake, but you seem to know some of it. Yuka, cherish him, okay? When you get to meet other guys with him around, you'll realize what a great person he is," Sophia said.

"I got it, don't worry," Yuka said reassuringly.

Both girls looked at each other before hugging and saying goodbye. As Yuka walked towards the Storm Owl, she suddenly felt the same strange warmth that she had felt three days ago when she was with Jake. Jake waved to her, causing Yuka to quicken her pace, yet at the same time, she could not ignore the strange feeling within her. Her heart seemed to be pounding a bit faster than usual.

_Is this what humans call… love?_ Yuka wondered as she unconsciously placed a hand on her chest.

* * *

"Why did Lord Darkaizer call us both back?" Umbrager asked as he and Espian walked down the hallway of the Verach Seijin's mothership.

"He says he has a new member assisting us on Earth."

"Who is it?"

"I am not sure, but he is said to have the ability to summon monsters," Espian replied as they both entered the bridge.

"Ah, Umbrager, Espian, nice to see you two again. Come, let me introduce you both to Nachtaz," Darkaizer said as he sat on a throne in the bridge.

A scrawny Verach Seijin stood beside him, full of pride and arrogance.

"i hear you both are having trouble with this Ultra known as Aegis?"

"That is none of you business," Umbrager said, immediately annoyed by Nachtaz's attitude.

"I believe you have observed things on Earth, am I right?" Espian asked calmly, putting his arm in front of Umbrager to silence him.

"Hmph, this Aegis and Raptor Team are nothing compared to my powers. I can so easily crush them."

"Do not underestimate your enemies. That is the first step to losing a battle," Umbrager warned.

"Ha! You both have overestimated them. Trust me, I will destroy Aegis in a few week's time. I'll let her and her allies slowly fall into my spiderweb, and fisnish them off in one shot. Darkaizer won't need to bother with you two anymore."

Umbrager wanted to rush Nachtaz, but Espian held him back.

"Let him try. He has no idea as to how powerful our enemies are. Let them destroy him, so we can gather more data about Aegis," Espian whispered, a sly look on his face.

Umbrager could only grin back evilly before both of them bowed and took their leave, as Nachtaz began bootlicking Darkaizer again.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Profile: Jeribolas

Origins: Original Creation

A jellyfish monster that was first sighted off the coast of Hawaii three months after 80 left Earth, it is extremely poisonous and aggressive, but it is also extremely vulnerable to cold

Name: Kevanix

Origins: Original Creation

The second of the Capsule Monsters Rodney made,a phoenix-like monster with the ability to manipulate fire as well as having a sonic scream powerful enough to destroy a building

Name: Evisark

Origins: Original Creation

The third of the Capsule Monsters Rodney made, this shark-like creature can fire an ice beam from its mouth. A skilled swimmer, it can move just as fast on land despite only having fins

* * *

Raptor Team Profile: Jake Takuya Wong (王 拓也)

Age: 22/Height: 176cm/Weight: 61kg

Hair: Short-medium straight, with wispy fringes reaching eyebrows, black/Eyes: Grey

Score for the Three Tests: Combat 43, Flight 45, Rescue 50

The sniper and rescue specialist of Raptor Team. Served as GCI soldier in GEAR SEA, failed application into Cascade Team. Of Chinese-Japanese descent. Friendly person who rarely loses his temper. Father is the Minister of Defense of Singapore. Normally serves as the pilot of the Storm Owl. Younger brother of Roderick 'Rodney' Tetsuya Wong. Currently beginning naturalization.

Classified: Jake Wong is one of three members of GEAR Japan who knows of Yuka's identity as Aegis. It appears that their closeness might be developing into something more than friendship

* * *

**Chapter 11: Operation Barrier Reef**

Yuka, Jake, Ren and Hideki are sent to assist GEAR Australia's Ghost Team in investigating a series of attacks on ships near the location of the Great Barrier Reef. Meeting a mysterious man who seems to know more than he should, Raptor Team learns that the Great Barrier Reef is in fact created by the Earth itself to seal away a dangerous creature known as the Blood Coral. Meanwhile, Hideki meets an old friend from his childhood, and an ultimate sacrifice gives Aegis a new power


	11. Chapter 11: Operation Barrier Reef

**Chapter 11: Operation Barrier Reef**

**Warning: This chapter contains some scenes of violence.**

"Bloody fog, can't even see my hands in front of him," a fisherman said as he and his partner hauled in a large net.

"Yeah, and we haven't been able to catch anything for the past six hours!"

"What do you think, captain?"

A large man with a full beard and holding a pipe looked at the net for a few moments.

"We best head back, not sure what's going on, but I have a bad feeling about this fog. It's unnatural," he said at last.

The three men were distracted by a call from another of the crew.

"Captain, there's a ship over there, just barely able to see it. It seems weird!"

True enough, the ship was lifeless. No sound came from it, no reply when the captain sounded the fog horn, and it seemed to be just drifting.

As the fishing vessel went closer, the captain and his men stared in horror as they realized that the ship was _the Farren_, which had gone missing two weeks ago. _The Farren_ looked like it had been attacked by cannon fire. Several parts of the ship were missing, as though they had been blasted off. A corpse hanged from a rope by its left leg, dangling off the side of the boat.

"Call the Coast Guard," the captain said as his pipe dropped from his hand

* * *

"_We'll be friends forever, right?" A boy asked an older girl dressed in black and holding his hand as they walked._

"_Of course we will, it's a promise we made."_

"_And what happens if one of us breaks it?"_

"_A curse will befall on us!"_

"_Don't forget about it!"_

_The girl laughed and nodded, and pulled a black crystal out, handing it over to the boy._

"_Hideki, this is a special crystal from my people. Hold on to this gift. In times of danger, this crystal will protect you, and those you hold close to your heart," she said._

"_I'll treasure it, Shira," the boy replied as he gazed at the black crystal in his palm…_

"Hideki, you okay?" Ren asked.

Startled, Hideki gave a jump before realizing that he wasn't paying attention to flying the Storm Kestrel.

"Woah, I'm sorry. I was thinking about something," he replied.

"Yeah, I'm just feeling that you're being strange today. You've spaced out three times already. Anyway, it's night time, we're flying low and there's this thick fog, so we better be careful."

The Storm Kestrel and Storm Sparrow approached a series of cliffs near Queensland, Australia, flying slowly and carefully through the misty night, just above the sea surface.

"GEAR Japan Raptor Team Deputy Captain Akagi Hideki to GEAR Australia, we are approaching Darwin Rock right now, permission to land."

"Permission granted. Welcome to Raider's Rock, Raptor Team. Please proceed to the Command Room immediately after you disembark."

A hidden hanger opened up near the foot of the cliffs, allowing the Storm Kestrel and Sparrow to fly inside it before closing. Raider's Rock is the main base of operations for GEAR Australia, a base built into a series of large cliffs around Queensland.

Inside the hanger, Ren and Hideki got off the Kestrel while Yuka and Jake got off the Sparrow.

"Nice piloting skills there, Yuka."

"It's my first time piloting through a fog though."

"Speaking about that fog, it's kinda strange. I never seen yellowish fog before, and it was really high up as well, almost covering the whole city."

"That is why we called you here to assist us," a booming voice said.

A man wearing a military suit approached them, followed by another man wearing black and grey uniform, indicating that he was a member of the anti-monster unit of GEAR Australia.

"I heard that Raptor Team have the most experience dealing with monsters. I'm Harry Solomon, Director of GEAR Australia. This is Captain James Terrence Howard, leader of Ghost Team."

All four Raptor Team members stood at attention and saluted. Captain Howard returned the salute.

"Anyway, come with us to the Command Room. We have much to discuss about."

* * *

"We have been getting strange tremors coming from the Great Barrier Reef for the past few months. Each time, the tremors get more and more stronger. Several marine life have been avoiding the whole place, as if it was cursed or something," Captain Howard said.

All eight members of Ghost Team were in the Command Room, along with Raptor Team.

"Not just that, look at the recent photos of the Great Barrier Reef. There seems to be cracks appearing all over the place," Zack Brown, the operator of Ghost Team, said as he showed different photos of the Reef, which appears scarred.

"Heh, looks like Rodney's skin," Ren said, causing Yuka and Jake to snigger.

Back at Bastion Cove's Ops Room, Rodney sneezed, scaring Ayane and Gommy.

"Anyways, two weeks ago, that yellowish fog began forming. It's covered much of the sea, along with a portion of the city that is near the sea."

"Sir, this seems like a weather issue. Why did you call us here?" Hideki asked.

"I'll have Stuart Reid and Kelly Carmine take you to the docks. You'll see why I called for your assistance."

* * *

"Urgh, the smell," Ren muttered as he and Jake walked around the deck of _The Farren_.

After receiving an SOS from a fishing vessel, the Royal Australian Navy had towed the Farren back to port. The whole ship looked like a massacre, with the bodies strewn everywhere.

"This is disgusting. Whoever did this must be very pissed off," Yuka said.

"Seems like he was more in a rush. Look at some of the corpses. They must have been alive after the attack, and the killer came back to do a proper job. And they're all over the place, like as though they were ambushed."

"God, I think I'm going to throw up," Ren replied as he went over to the side of the ship.

As Ren emptied the contents from his stomach into the sea, Jake and Yuka rejoined Hideki inside the bridge with Ghost Team's Stuart Reid and Kelly Carmine.

"Where's Ren?"

"Polluting the sea. Who's the captain of this ship?"

"Right here," Stuart said as he pointed to the body of the captain, who had been killed when his head smashed onto the ship's wheel.

"Well, there's another body by the side of the ship. He must have gotten his leg caught in the ropes while trying to escape and the resulting recoil snapped his neck," Jake said.

"The wounds look like laser blasts," Kelly said as she observed three long gashes down the captain's back.

"This is why you called us here?"

"Not only this, but two other ships got towed in not long after _The Farren_ arrived. Same situation, crew were slaughtered and no signs of the attacker or anything to give us a clue. Oh, give me a moment," Stuart said as the built-in receiver in his helmet went off.

"Hey, guys, look what I found," Ren said as he entered the bridge, holding on to some black feathers.

"Where did you find them?"

"One of the dead sailors was gripping them tightly." Had to force his fingers open to retrieve them."

"What's so interesting about them?" Yuka asked.

"They're not normal size, that's for sure," Hideki replied as he measured one of the feathers against his arm.

"Hey, I just received some information about the other two ships. They found a survivor on one of them. Scared out of his wits," Stuart said as he re-entered the bridge.

* * *

Yuka, Hideki and Ren watch as Kelly and Jake talk to the survivor in English. The survivor was clearly frightened, and there was a burn wound on his shoulders.

"You understand any of the things they are saying?" Ren asked.

"I understand a bit. They are saying light, ship was attacked, er… strange coral creature, er… Godzilla? He says Godzilla attack his ship in the form of a coral," Hideki replied.

"No, you knuckleheads, he's saying the thing was the size of Godzilla, but it then shrunk itself to human size and began attacking," Jake snapped at them.

"Sorry," all three said at the same time.

"Man, I hate being a translator," Jake grumbled as he joined them.

"So a coral monster attacked them?"

"A smart one, too. That guy said it was laughing as it shot laser beams at his crewmates. It even threw the captain overboard."

"So it has human intelligence?" Ren asked as the four of them walked down the docks.

"I think so, but what kind of alien or monster or demon is it?"

"It is the Blood Coral, an alien from the Planet Shadea," a voice said behind them.

"Woah! Who are you?" Hideki asked.

A man with a peaceful expression on his face stood behind them, although his face shows signs of aging. He had medium long hair that reaches his shoulders and a strange pendant around his neck.

"Er… Who are you, sir?"

"Ah, I should have introduced myself first. My name is Jack Shindoh," the man replied.

"Well, Mr Shindoh, what did you just say earlier?"

"Oh, nothing. But I would like to speak with you two. Mind if I borrow your teammates for a while?" Jack asked.

Hideki and Ren were about to ask the reason why he only wanted to speak with Jake and Yuka when Yuka intervened.

"Sure, no problem. Don't worry, guys, friend of mine," Yuka said

"Okay, just keep in sight," Ren replied.

Jack waited for Ren and Hideki to walk some distance away before turning to Yuka and Jake.

"All right, I'm not gonna hide since you already know who Yuka is. On M-78, I am known as Ultraman Great. I'm currently using the appearance of my human host from another dimension," Jack explained.

"Another dimension?"

"Great was sent to hunt down a deadly monster virus known as Gudis. When it escaped to another Earth, Great followed it, causing the defense organization of that Earth to begin receiving news about Great being on Mars. After Gudis' destruction, he stayed for a while before returning to our dimension."

"Anyways, that creature you are facing is known as the Blood Coral, from Planet Shadea, a planet that is literally a sea of darkness. I don't know why he came to your Earth, but he has an ally and is currently hiding near the Great Barrier Reef."

"Is that the reason why the Great Barrier Reef is getting even more damaged?" Yuka asked.

"I'm afraid so. The Blood Coral is getting stronger by hiding in the Great Barrier Reef due to human pollution. I am afraid that he is going to hasten the complete destruction of the Great Barrier Reef."

"Complete destruction?"

"Due to overfishing, pollution, negliglence to take care of the water quality and other human factors, the Great Barrier Reef is being destroyed. And since most humans care little for the natural world, the governments and conservative organizations had been unable to do much to stem the tide," Jake explained.

"And that is how the Blood Coral found his perfect hiding spot. Of course, Mother Nature does not give anything for free, especially when something so evil is trying to hide himself inside her. The Blood Coral " Jack finished, a concerned look on his face.

"You mentioned the Blood Coral has an ally. Who is it?"

"He's… Look out!"

A dark energy ball hits the ground near them, missing Jake by inches. The blast alerts Hideki and Ren, along with the members of GEAR Australia's forces.

"There! On the roof!" Ren pointed out.

A bird-like creature stood on the roof of a warehouse, firing energy balls at the humans. Everyone dove into cover and fired back, but the bird-creature dodges the shots effortlessly and fired back. A blast throws five GCI soldiers into the sea.

"Shoot it! Shoot it!" someone shouted.

Hideki took aim, but then hesitate. Yuka noticed his eyes widened with surprise before Ren threw himself at Hideki, knocking him to the ground and saving him from an energy blast.

"Jake! Snipe it! We'll cover you!" Ren said as he fired off several shots.

"I didn't bring the Blitz!"

"Use your Dual Shooter and pray!"

"After you find me a deity of bullets and guns, Bakaojima!"

"Here! This rifle has a scope!" Stuart said as he passed one of the weaker laser rifles used by the GCI soldiers.

Taking aim, Jake fired four shots at the bird-creature, successfully hitting it three times. The bird-creature falls from the roof. The GCI soldiers rushed it, pointing their guns at the creature.

"Is it still alive?" Kelly asked.

"Still breathing, ma'am. What do we do?"

"Bring it back to base. Let the Cpatain decide," Stuart replied for Kelly.

As two burly GCI soldiers pulled the bird-creature away, the others helped the five injured soldiers out of the water.

"So, Bakaojima, huh?" Yuka asked.

"It just hit me in the middle of the firefight."

"What kind of nickname is that?" Ren complained.

"Quiet, Bakaojima."

"Stop it, Jake!"

"Bakaojima!"

"Yuka?!"

"Well, this is awkward," Jack said as he dusted some dirt and sand off his shirt.

"Mr Shindoh, I think it's better you accompany us back to Raider's Rock. You seem to know what's going on," Jake whispered to Jack.

"Of course, but try to keep me out of sight. Raider's Rock is a no-trespassing place after all."

* * *

"Where is the bird?" Captain Howard asked.

"In the holding cells," Stuart replied.

"I want to talk to it. I want to know why it attacked us."

"We've been trying to, sir. It refused to speak apart from insulting us and telling us how Earth is going to fall."

"Any idea what it is?"

"It says its called Drabon, a member of the Lucklie."

"Zack, see what you can find out about this Lucklie."

"No need, I can tell you about them," Hideki said suddenly.

"You know what it is?" Yuka asked, surprised.

"I… met one when iwas younger. Honest."

"Well, Mr Akagi, please accompany me down to the cells and interrogate this Drabon," Captain Howard said.

"Something's wrong. Why did Hideki know what that alien's species is?" Ren asked.

"Not just that, he zoned out during the firefight. Nice save by the way, Ren."

"I'm interested in finding out why myself," Jack added.

"What the- Why are you in here? And how did you get in?" Ren asked, careful not to raise his voice.

Jack pointed to Kelly, who grinned and acted as though she did not see the group. Jack Shindo was dressed in a janitor's uniform and cap and was holding a pail and mop. A pass hung by his chest pocket saying "Jack Sheldon" on it.

"No picture?"

"It's a temporary pass. I won't be staying for long. I'm going to sneak around, if you guys don't mind."

"Should we follow Hideki? See why he knows about Drabon being an Alien Lucklie?" Jake asked as Jack Shindoh left the area.

"We'll just ask him when he comes back, but what's with that Shindoh guy?" Ren replied.

* * *

"Drabon, my name is Akagi Hideki. I just want to talk, if you do not mind," Hideki said to Drabon, the Alien Lucklie that had attacked them earlier.

"The way you sound, are you from a military organization?" Drabon replied. There was a metallic flanging in his voice.

"Yes, I am from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, but I am currently working for GEAR Japan's Raptor Team."

"Japan, you say? My daughter went to Japan when she came to Earth."

"Your daughter?"

"Yes, and Japan is also the place where she died," Drabon replied.

"Where she died?"

Images begin flashing through Hideki's mind. A slim teenaged girl, with long black hair and dressed in a gothic black blouse and long skirt, holding the hand of a child. A group of angry vilalgers, cursing at her. The child's parents shielding his eyes from a violent scene. A gravestone. A black crystal.

Hideki realized he was breathing harder than usual.

"Are you all right? You look… sick."

Drabon's words are of concern, but the tone was taunting.

"I'm fine," Hideki replied, changing his tone back to the way it was when he was in the military- intimidating and strict.

Drabon appeared taken back by the sudden change in Hideki's tone.

"I'll be back with more questions," Hideki replied as he got up and left the room with Captain Howard, only to find himself facing Ren, Yuka and Jake the moment he opened the door, their faces an expression of mild surprise.

* * *

"Damn, I didn't know he can sound like that," Ren said as he brought a canned drink from a vending machine in the corridor.

"Yeah, usually he speaks in a gentler tone, although when he gets annoyed his tone gets slightly fiercer. But that, just now, was menacing," Jake agreed as he toss one can to Yuka.

"Where is he, anyway?"

"Over there, by the balcony. He seems to be holding something in his hands," Yuka said as she pointed to a balcony at the end of the corridor, where Hideki was.

* * *

Hideki was fiddling with a black crystal as he thought back to what Drabon said in the interrogation room. He was embarrassed by how it went- he did not even manage to ask Drabon a single proper question before finding himself in need of some fresh air. He was also worried about what the rest of Raptor Team will think of him if Ren and the other two were to tell them about his sudden change of tone.

"Ah, everything isn't working out today for me, huh. Freezing in the middle of a fight and getting owned by the person I'm supposed to be interrogating," he said to himself as he looked at the black crystal, thinking back about his childhood.

_Flashback_

"_Why are you all hurting her? She didn't do anything to you all!" a nine-year-old Hideki cried as he shielded his friend from a group of angry adults._

"_Get out of our way, boy! She's an alien! Don't you see she's dangerous!"_

"_She's not dangerous!"_

"_All aliens are! How many times have they attacked our planet!"_

"_Move it! Kill the crow!"_

"_No! Shira!" Hideki screamed as a burly man grabbed him and literally threw him aside._

"_Don't worry about me, Hideki! Just don't forget what we promised each other, okay?" Shira called out as the townspeople_

"_Shira!" Hideki screamed as the townspeople began hitting Shira with whatever weapons they had._

* * *

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Hideki is your son?" Ren asked, a look of surprise on his face.

Yuka, Jake and Ren were reporting back to Bastion Cove about the situation in Australia when Chief Engineer Akagi Kageo of the Engineering and Mechanical Department appeared on the screen with the rest of Raptor Team.

"Yes, although we have grown distant from each other. He blames me for not being there to help him save the Alien Lucklie he befriended but mostly blames himself."

"No wonder Hideki knows what an Alien Lucklie is. But what happened?"

"The same tragedy as Alien Mates, I'm afraid. The townspeople found out who Shira, the Alien Lucklie that befriended my son, was and got paranoid. They brutally beat her to death in front of Hideki. Ever since then, Hideki changed. He maintained a mask of a carefree, gentle person, taking out his anger and guilt in video games, gyms and eventually by performing in air shows during his time in the JASDF."

"Shit… you mean he's been shouldering this much baggage since he was a kid?"

"Yes. He won't even come talk to me when he entered Raptor Team," Chief Akagi said in a sad tone.

"Anyways, the situation in Australia seems to be more serious than it appears. GEAR Japan has just sent a detachment of GCI soldiers over. Dean and Kohaku will be joing you guys there. GEAR SEA has also announced that they are heading over to provide assistance," Captain Iketani said.

"What's going on? Why do we need so many personnel all of a sudden?" Jake asked.

"You won't believe it if I tell you. SCAN detected an anomaly in the Great Barrier Reef. On closer inspection, we discovered a strange monster underneath it, and its power readings are off the charts. It's threat level is higher than that of Zetton and Alien Guts," Toru explained.

"We've managed to get a proper visual on it. Sending you the picture now," Ayane said.

A picture pops up on the screen, showing a humanoid-like creature with several coral features. His right arm resembles a cannon and his left shoulder has several tube-like objects on it.

"Looks like a Power Ranger, except for the corals," Jake noted.

"The Storm Sparrow is on the Leviathan, which is about to reach Australia," Captain Iketani said.

"Got it, cap. We'll let Captain Howard know about this," Yuka said.

"Wait! One more thing, please. When you find Hideki, tell him… tell him to come find me sometime when he returns. We… need to talk," Chief Akagi said, sadness on his face.

"Will do. Zack, inform Captain Howard about the Leviathan's arrival," Ren said to the operator of Ghost Team.

"No problem. What about your friend, Hideki? I noticed he was not with you since you guys returned from the docks."

"We'll get him."

* * *

The Leviathan emerged from the fog, slowly making its way to the docking area of Raider's Rock. Captain Howard and the rest of Ghost Team boarded the Leviathan with Raptor Team. Dean and Kohaku stood beside the Storm Sparrow, which is positioned besides the Dive Seagulls and Pelicans on the flight deck.

"About time you two joined the party," Ren said to Dean and Kohaku as he and Hideki went over to greet them.

"Yeah, you forgot to invite us," Kohaku replied

"What's that?" Dean asked, pointing at the black crystal in Hideki's hands.

"Oh, this? It's a gift,from a… a very special friend," Hideki replied.

"Heard Chief Akagi at the Engineering and Mechanical Department is your old man."

"Yeah, but we don't talk much nowadays."

Meanwhile, Jake and Yuka are reunited with Jamal and Sophia.

"Deputy Captain," Jake said respectfully as he and Yuka gave a salute to Jamal, who returned it.

"C'mon, we're buddies, right? No need for this formal shit. After receiving the information from SCAN, GEAR International agreed that GEAR Japan, SEA and Australia will work together to subdue this threat."

"What are we up against?" Sophia asked.

"Some crazy creature that looks like a Power Ranger fused with a lot of corals," Jake replied.

"Psst, Jake, what's a Power Ranger?" Yuka whispered.

"I'll explain another time."

"Ah, the Leviathan. It's been a while, Captain Nguyen," Captain Howard said as he greeted the leader of Cascade Team.

"True, James, it's been four months."

"I was just told you were arriving. Could you update me on the situation?"

"Yes, let's do it now. Come, into the bridge."

* * *

Drabon silently sat in his holding cell, wondering when his partner was going to rise.

That man, Akagi Hideki, seemed to have some connection to the Alien Lucklie. Drabon wondered why he react that way when he mentioned his daughter.

"Hey, bird, how are you doing?" A guard asked through the door slit.

"Don't poop on the floor, pigeonface," Another guard replied, laughing to himself.

"Hmph, humans, I wonder what it is that made strong beings like Ultramen come to protect you all," Drabon said to himself.

"Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?" The first guard said.

"We're humans, we don't have any special powers like you aliens. Besides, half the aliens that come to Earth wants to destroy it or conquer it, that's why we have Ultramen protecting us."

"Ha, I can see why Ultramen protected your pathethic little planet. You humans are weak, paranoid, scared of anything that appeaers dangerous and easy to trick, unable to defend your own planet. The Ultramen took pity on you, that's why they protect you."

"Oh, now you're insulting us? Well, go ahead and insult us."

"Yeah, you're in a cage. What can you do to us?"

"Oh, so much I can do to you all," Drabon said as his eyes glowed.

A loud explosion is heard as the door of Drabon's cell blew into pieces, sending the two guards flying. As they got up, Drabon casually snaps the first guard's neck before grabbing the other guard and slamming his head violently against the wall twice, killing him.

"Now, it is time for my vengeance to be complete, and for my daughter to return to me," Drabon said as he walked down the corridor.

* * *

"Here's the strategy. Cascade Team will use their sub-jets to force this coral monster to emerge from the Great Barrier Reef, lure it to the surface and into this isolated part of the city. This whole area is being flattened so there's no one in there within an area of 5km. There are a few abandoned buildings in there though," Captain Howard explained.

"So we lure this creature into this area. What happens after that?" Jamal asked.

"Ghost Team will ambush that creature, and should it try to escape, Cascade Team will cut it off and drive it back into the killzone."

"What about Raptor Team?" Dean asked.

"You guys have the more advanced weapons. You guys will swoop in for the kill once this coral monster is weakened."

"Okay, we're all set here! Let's roll," Ren said when the screen in the bridge of the Leviathan switched to the control room of Raider's Rock.

"Zack? What's wrong?"

"Sir, Drabon, the Alien Lucklie, he's escaped!"

"What? What happened?"

"I don't know, sir. He's killed five guards and left the base by blowing a hole through a wall. Not just that, we're also getting strange readings from the sea."

"Sir, the coral monster is on the move. We've also detected a strange creature on the flight deck," Cascade Team's operator said.

"Zoom in with the security camera," Captain Nguyen said.

As the camera zoomed in on the intruder on the flight deck of the Leviathan, everyone realized that it was Drabon.

"Damn him, I'll go get him," Hideki said as he turned around and left the room.

"Hideki, wait!" Jake called out, but Ren stopped him.

"He knows how to handle him, let him do it."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Ghost Team, into the Bats, quick!" Captain Howard ordered.

As Ghost Team left the Leviathan to quickly return to Raider's Rock, Cascade Team was scrambling all the Dive Seagulls and Pelicans. Raptor Team also got into their Storm Birds, with Ren piloting the Storm Sparrow on his own, before taking off towards the designated kill zone.

* * *

As Hideki ran towards Drabon, he was stopped by the man who spoke with Yuka and Jake earlier, Jack Shindoh.

"What do you plan to do?" Jack asked.

"I'm going to stop him, whatever he's planning to do."

"He is consumed by hatred and anger. If you are not careful with your words, you'll only provoke him."

"Then I'll shoot him myself," Hideki replied.

"Fine, but I'll go with you," Jack said.

"Well, suit yourself then."

The two men approached Drabon, who was channelling energy into the sea.

"Drabon! What are you doing?" Hideki asked.

"Summoning the end of your Earth! Do not try to stop me, for it is useless. Your alsers won't pierce through this energy shield around me."

_It's now or never_, Hideki thought as he pulled out the black crystal Shira gave to him.

"Drabon! Your daughter, is her name Shira?"

The channelling paused.

"Yes… that was her name… How did you know?"

"She's my friend, and yes, I watched her get killed in front of me. You came to Earth to avenge her, right?"

"Yes.. this cruel pathethic planet murdered my daughter. I wondered what sort of creature will murder my sweet Shira, only to find out that she was killed by a bunch of cowardly dogs that call themselves humans!"

"What are you planning?"

"Destroying this planet! What do you think? Right now, my ally is stirring under the sea. He has fed on enough deaths to become more powerful! All I have to do now is channel this dark energy into him, so that he will become unstoppable!"

"Your ally is the Blood Coral, am I right?" Jack asked.

"Yes… why do you know? Oh, I see… you're not human, you are an Ultraman!"

Hideki looked at Jack in shock, but Jack did not seem bothered.

"Yes, I am. But I ask you, Drabon, what will you gain from helping the Blood Coral destroy Earth?"

"My vengeance, and my daughter back. But I want to ask you, Ultraman, why do you and your people protect this planet? I have only seen cowards and bullies who backstab each other when they have the chance!"

"If you see every human like that, you are wrong! True, most humans fall prey to their inner darkness easily, but take a look at this group of people flying in their jets. These people risk their lives everyday to protect others. You cannot group them all toge-"

"They do it because they are paid! You really believe that human are willing to risk their own lives without a reward? Naïve!"

"You would not give up on your revenge?"

"No, and seeing as to how you are planning to stop me, stop this first!" Drabon shouted as he fired a beam of purple energy into the sky.

A black sphere plummet from the sky, landing in the designated kill zone. As the dust settled, a greenish, limbless monster with a head on top and another at the bottom appeared, roaring and beginning its rampage.

"Bogun! Damn you, bringing a monster from another dimension into this Earth."

"Jack, let me handle this, you take on that monster," Hideki said.

Hideki walked towards Drabon, who has continued channelling energy into the sea. Jack, meanwhile, took out his pendant and closed his eyes. In a flash of light, Jack had assumed his true form as Ultraman Great, and he flew towards Bogun.

* * *

"What the hell, it's huge! Do we have any record of this monster in SCAN Database?" Ren uttered as he and the rest of Raptor Team stared at Bogun, who was nearly twice the height of Aegis.

"Ghost Team? We have a problem," Dean said to Ghost Team.

"Yeah, we see it too, we're on our way."

Within seconds, three shimmering, transparent objects appeared in the sky, firing at Bogun.

"What are those invisible things?" Yuka asked.

"Ever wonder why they're called Ghost Team?" Jake replied, grinning.

The invisible objects shimmered out of invisibility, revealing three jets.

"The fighter jets Ghost Team uses are the Stealth Bats and the larger Shadow Bats. They're equipped with stealth technology that prevents them from being seen or detected on radar. They are ambushers," Jake explained to Yuka.

Bogun swiped at the Bats with its tentacle on its top head, but misses them all. Jake and Kohaku brought the Owl and Kestrel closer to fire teir weapons at it, distracting it from the Storm Sparrow which quickly fire at the tentacle, severing it.

As Bogun thrashed around in pain, Ultraman Great landed in front of it and began grappling with it.

"Woah! An Ultraman! And he's rather huge too!" Ren said.

"I see why he's called Great," Jake said to Yuka.

"I'm 46 metres, but Great is around 62 metres. He's one of the largest Ultras in M78."

* * *

"That fool, Bogun is merely a distraction. And what do you plan on doing, Akagi Hideki?" Drabon asked.

Hideki responded to the question by taking out the black crystal from his pocket, the one given to him by Shira.

"You blame humans for your daughter's death, fine. But I ask you, is it worth destroying Earth when twenty-seven humans out of more than seven billion are the ones responsible for her death?"

Drabon remained silent.

"Your daughter gave me this as a gift. We were friends. She taught me many things about this world, this universe. We made an oath. But I couldn't protect her at all. I broke the promise we made."

Drabon turned to look at him.

"If you want revenge for your daughter, then kill me! I'm the one who ultimately caused Shira's death! Spare my planet, and I'll trade my life for it!"

"You idiot! You think your puny live is worth saving an entire planet? No, Earth will burn, and all humans will die," Drabon said as a huge creature rose from the waters.

"The Blood Coral," Hideki whispered.

"Blood Coral! I have fulfilled my part of the deal. How does death feels like?" Drabon shouted happily.

"Wonderful, I can feel the essence of death channelling through me, empowering me. How many people did you kill Drabon?"

"Around 40 to 50 altogether."

"I see."

"Blood Coral, bring my daughter back now. You said I will be rejoined with her once I help you!"

"Yes, I promised! You will be reunited with your daughter… In the afterlife!"

With that, the Blood Coral fired two shots at Drabon, destroying his leg and leaving a large wound in his chest before making his way to the city, ignoring the Dive Seagulls and Pelicans attacking him. Hideki made his way to Drabon, who gasp for breath.

"Why… why did he…"

"You're the idiot here, you bastard. He never intended to bring Shira back. He used your grief and anger to benefit himself," Hideki said.

Meanwhile, Jake and Yuka received news about the Blood Coral's revival and that he was heading towards the city instead of the killzone. Jake nodded to Yuka, who transformed and flew towards the Blood Coral in a sphere of light.

The Blood Coral was a few steps from the city when Aegis transformed back into her true form and kick him back into the sea.

"Ah, if it isn't another Ultra! And a female at that!" The Blood Coral said, not taking her seriously.

Aegis looked at the Leviathan, seeing Hideki kneeling besides Drabon, who appears to be bleeding out.

"What have you done?"

"Ending a beautiful partnership. It's sad, how easily I was able to play around with that Lucklie like he was a puppet."

"You… Unforgivable. I won't let you win!" Aegis shouted as she lunged at the Blood Coral, trading blows with him before he fired his arm cannon at Aegis, sending her crashing to a side.

Getting up, Aegis rushed towards the Blood Coral, delivering a powerful kick to his side, only for him to lose his balance slightly before returning a punch to her face. Not giving up, Aegis attacked him again. The Blood Coral fired his arm cannon at her again, sending her a good distance away, before firing several energy bolts from the corals on his left shoulder at Aegis, cuasing several sparks to fly from her body. As Aegis fell to one knee in pain, the Blood Coral constructed a whip using dark energy on his arm cannon and send it at Aegis, tying her up in it. As Aegis tried to break free, the Blood Coral sent more dark energy into the whip, causing Aegis to scream in pain as it shot through her, causing her to fall on her knees completely, her Color Timer blinking faster and faster.

"You are no match for me," the Blood Coral taunted arrogantly.

"Shit, Aegis is noe match for him at all," Hideki muttered as he took aim at the Blood Coral and fired several shots to no effect.

"Give me… the crystal…" Drabon said weakly.

"What?"

"I am… dying… but at least let me do something. I… do not know whether I was right or wrong, Akagi Hideki… about humans… but I let… my anger… my grief… I ended up tricked, betrayed… I'll be honest, this is not really for your Earth, but for myself…"

"I know, but what do you plan on doing?"

"I will… transfer my powers to that Aegis… The black crystal, it's called a soul crystal. We keep a portion of our soul in it. In this soul crystal… is part of Shira's soul… Her gentleness… will nullify the hatred in my powers… Give it to me…"

"I… How can I trust you?"

"I swear… it's the truth… I swear on my daughter's name… Hurry, not much time left…"

Reluctantly, Hideki placed the black crystal in Drabon's hands. Drabon placed it on his chest with both hands and began glowing. His eyes went dark as a bolt of black light shot out from his body and headed straight towards Aegis, entering her.

Aegis began glowing so bright that Hideki had to shield his eyes. The pilots fighting at the killzone also stopped and stared. Even Great and Bogun stopped fighting.

"Jamal to Jake, what is going on? Why is Aegis glowing?"

"I don't know! But it's so damn bright most of us here have to shield our eyes too!"

Aegis finally stop glowing, but something has changed. With a single move she broke out of the energy whip binding her, revealing that she has changed her form. She retained her blue and silver colour, but there were two stripes of black colour, one oneach of her arms, from her shoulders to her wrists. The blue colour on her body is also outlined by black lines, and around her Color Timer was a patch of black colour that seems to resemble the shape of a bird.

"Woah… cool," Jake said silently.

"She changed form!" Ren shouted.

"I don't believe it…" Captain Howard said, from the Shadow Bat.

"Let's call it Nightingale Form!" Ayane said back at Bastion Cove, where she, Toru and Captain Iketani were watching through SCAN satellites, much to the other two's amusement.

"What is this?" The Blood Coral asked, his voice quivering for the first time.

"Payback time," Aegis said before unloading a series of punch, chops and kicks on the Blood Coral, sending him sprawling.

As the Blood Coral got up, Aegis fired several black coloured energy bolts from her wrists at him, sending sparks flying all over his body.

"Impossible! What power is this? Why has she become stronger?" the Blood Coral shouted in disbelief.

Deciding to end this, Aegis stretched out her left hand, creating a bow-like energy construct on her wrist. Then pulling the 'string' back, she fired a large bolt of energy at the Blood Coral, shaped like a bird. The energy attack cuts through the Blood Coral.

"Why… This should not have happened…" the Blood Coral asked as he slowly split apart from the head down and exploded.

At the same time, Great finally backs Bogun into a corner. His own Color Timer blinking, Great fired the Burning Plasma at Bogun three times, finally ending its life.

Silently, both Ultras looked at each other before taking off into the sky.

* * *

"What happens now?" Kohaku asked as Raptor Team heads back to Bastion Cove.

"I dunno, but Hideki is carrying an alien bird's corpse in the Kestrel," Dean replied.

"Why are you bringing Drabon back, Hideki?" Jake asked.

"I plan to bury him beside Shira," Hideki replied.

"Shira? Who is that?"

"A friend of mine… Drabon's daughter, murdered by humans."

Raptor team fell silent.

"Hey, why the silence? It's been like fifteen years, I can outgrow it," Hideki said, his usual gentle, carefree tone back.

"I guess," Ren replied.

"Hey, is our music players connected? Who wants techno?" Hideki asked as he inserted a CD into the inbuilt music player of the Kestrel.

"Hang on, linking the systems," Kohaku said as Ren fiddled with the controls.

"Wait, not that crap music…"

"Sory, Dean, five against one," Jake replied as he linked up the music player system of the Storm Owl with the Storm Kestrel.

As the others heckled Dean, Jake noticed Yuka had a concerned look on her face.

"You really think he'll be all right? After all these?" Yuka asked.

"I don't know, but at least now we know the burden he carries around," Jake replied.

Both Yuka and Jake glanced at the Storm Kestrel, as Hideki blasted techno music through the music system much to Dean's discomfort, who complained about how it was too loud.

* * *

Raptor Team Profile: Akagi Hideki (赤城 英木)

Age: 26/Height: 178cm/Weight: 64kg

Hair: Spiky, swept back with some strands over forehead, stubble black/Eyes: Brown

Score for the Three Tests: Combat 47, Flight 50, Rescue 41

An ace pilot of the JASDF who also performs in air shows. Joined Raptor Team after Hidetate Yuka. Has experience with airlifting and mechanics as well as having some knowledge on aliens. Known to be calm under fire, making him a good team leader out in the field. Due to voting by his colleagues, he has been officially promoted to Deputy Captain of Raptor Team. Normally serves as the pilot of the Storm Kestrel. Son of Chief Engineer Akagi Kageo.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Name: Blood Coral

Origins: Original Creation

An alien from Planet Shadea, a planet of darkness. Resembles a Power Ranger fused with coral parts. Capable of manipulating dark energy and draws energy from death

Name: Alien Lucklie

Origins: Original Creation

A race of bird-like aliens, capable of firing laser bolts from their eyes. Normally peaceful. All Lucklie carry small black crystals that they give as gifts to people they care for

Name: Bogun

Origins: Ultraman: Towards the Future

A huge monster that is almost twice the size of Aegis, this monster was fought by Great in another Earth. Has some psychic powers and was originally a product of Gudis Infection

Name: Ultraman Great

Origins: Ultraman: Towards the Future

The first Ultraman created in the Heisei Period, as well as first not to take place in Japan. Has been integrated into main timeline via the movie Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy

* * *

Chapter 12: The Amber Medic

Raptor Team is sent to investigate a sudden appearance of a monster near the town of Hachifuji. There, Kohaku reunites with her younger sister Shinju, who hates her for joining Raptor Team for some reason. The investigation quickly takes a turn for the worst when the monster emerges while Leo, still in his human guise, gives Rodney a drive while he is investigating the mysterious craters believed to be caused by beam attacks. Meanwhile the Verach Seijin plots to use monsters from other dimensions to invade Earth.

* * *

**Tidbit Info: Hideki's story doesn't end here. I'll focus on it in a future chapter. Anyways, I'm letting you guys vote for the next monster in Chapter 12:**

**-Golza (Tiga)**

**-Mokian (Gaia)**

**-Banpira (Nexus)**

**I'll start working on the next chapter on January 21****st****, and the monster with more votes will be selected. Anyways, sorry for the long delay. Work and illness has slowed me down considerably.**


	12. Chapter 12: The Amber Medic

**Chapter 12: The Amber Medic**

"What is he doing?" Umbrager silently asked Espian as they watch Nachtaz conjuring a strange, bluish energy in his hands over a strange device.

"I do not know. And I don't really want to know."

"So why are we watching him from the shadows?"

A portal suddenly opened above the device, scaring the two Verach Seijins.

"Is that the Monster Graveyard?" Espian asked in wonder.

The two of them watched as Nachtaz concentrated the blue energy into the portal before sending a huge burst through it. The portal then closed as Nachtaz stepped back from the machine.

"Nachtaz, how goes your plan?" The deep, intimidating voice of Darkaizer boomed acorss the room.

"Ah, my lord, I have summoned a monster from another dimension into this world. Nothing special, just for observation of the enemy," Nachtaz replied, bowing so low that he could kiss the ground.

"I see. In that case, carry on with your plan," Darkaizer said before leaving the area.

"What manner of monster did he send to Earth this time?" Umbrager said.

"The last time, he sent this 'Bogun' creature to assist the Blood Coral, but it turned out to be weak despite its size. Nachtaz isn't foolish – he's treading the waters at the moment. He most likely knew that Bogun will fall along with the Blood Coral, although Aegis' transformation was unexpected."

"We should go down and observe, see how his plans are turning out," Umbrager suggested.

"True, let us leave for Earth now," Espian replied.

The two of them left their hiding place without Nachtaz's knowledge.

* * *

"Remind me again, why are we going to Hachifuji Town?" Ren asked as the Storm Birds flew across Japan, headed for a small town located near Aomori.

"Three days ago, a blue flash of light appeared in the mountains. Not long after, a strange monster appeared. It has not left the mountain to cause trouble, but we're going there to access the threat level," Hideki replied.

"Not just that, this monster didn't show up in SCAN Database. We might be dealing with a new monster," Yuka added.

"You mean like that gigantic two-headed creature we saw in Australia?"

"Yep, although an anonymous letter was sent to us regarding that creature. It's called a 'Bogun', and it appears that that creature was from another dimension," Hideki said as he adjusted the speed of the Storm Kestrel.

"I wonder who?" Yuka said silently, giving a sly look at Jake, who managed to keep himself from laughing since both of them knew that it was Ultraman Great who had sent the letter the moment it arrived.

"So, Kohaku, what do you think?" Ren asked.

"Huh? What? Oh… sorry, I wasn't listening."

"You seem a bit lost. You all right?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for your concern," Kohaku replied as she smiled at Ren.

_Strange_, Ren thought.

"Er… Ren, can you try to contact Dr Kurosaki and Rodney? I've just been informed by Toru that they are actually on their way to Hachifuji right now," Jake asked as he waved to Ren from the Storm Owl.

Ren returns a tumbs-up sign as he fiddled with the radio.

"Dr Kurosaki? Come in, this is Ren."

"Oh, Rennosuke! Roderick and I are on our way to Hachifuji with Captain Kimura and some of his men. You and your teammates will probably reach there first. Let us know once you've reached."

"No problem, doctor. Ren out."

"Hey, Jake, if Ren's real name is Rennosuke, why do you keep calling him 'Ren' instead?" Yuka asked.

"Because it's sweet, short and doesn't sound stupid."

Inside the Storm Sparrow, Ren sneezed.

"All right, we've arrived," Dean said as the Storm Birds landed on a field near the village.

Hachifuji was a small village with a population of about 120. It also comes with a small hospital, a police station and a volunteer fire department. The local inn was located near the mountains, complete with natural hot springs shared by humans and monkeys.

"Urgh, I hate mountain roads… Always make me get carsick,," Rodney grumbled as he got off the GCI Armored Vehicle, holding his stomach.

"Are you all right, Roderick?" Dr Kurosaki asked as she got out of the vehicle as well.

"Oh, nothing, I'm just- what the hell?"

Rodney stared at a huge black crater just in front of him. It wasn't the only one, however- the entire stretch of field was covered with them.

"Damn, looks like someone was shelling this area," one of the GCI soldiers commented.

"That's why we're here, to find out who or what is responsible for this," Captain Kimura said, having accompanied them under orders from the Director himself.

* * *

**Dfox300's Tidbit Info: Captain Kimura is the leader of the GEAR Combat Infantry (the foot soldiers of GEAR) for GEAR Japan. He first appeared in Chapter 3. It's been a while since he saw some action**

* * *

"Hey, Kimura? Anywhere we can land? The whole place looked like it got arti-ed," Ren's voice came through the radio in the vehicle.

"Let me see… Okay, there's a clean area, near the forests. It's big enough for all three," Kimura replied as he viewed through his binoculars.

"Okay, landing now…"

Soon, the Storm Birds are on the ground, and Yuka and Co. are talking to the villagers. All except Kohaku, who instead busied herself by helping the GCI soldiers move medical equipment out of their vehicles.

"Psst, what's wrong with Kohaku?" Yuka whispered to Jake and Ren.

Both men glanced at the team medic, looked at each other and shrugged. Burning with curiousity, Yuka was about to go over and ask Kohaku herself when a female voice is heard screaming insults at them.

"What are you murderers doing here? Leave now! Hachifuji does not welcome your kind!"

"Wargh!" Ren gave a short shout.

"Oh crap," Jake uttered.

Dean said something, but his words were overridden by a "Beep" sound.

Rodney dropped the things he was holding in his hands.

Yuka and Hideki looked at them all, wondering what on Earth was going on with their teammates.

"Shinju? Moriumi Shinju?" The four guys said in unison.

"Who is that? Kohaku's sister?" Hideki asked.

"Yep, and Japan's number one GEAR hater and activist," Rodney replied.

"No wonder Kohaku was behaving so strange today," Yuka whispered to Hideki.

"Yeah, but what's with the reactions from you guys?"

"We do not mention Kohaku's sister in front of her!" Ren explained.

"It's taboo," Jake added.

"She's a monster lover," Dean hissed.

"I'll fill you in about it later," Rodney said, motioning for them to keep quiet.

Raptor Team then watched uncomfortably as the other villagers begin arguing with Shinju.

"Shinju! What are you talking about? We called them here because of these recent meteors attacks!"

"A lot of villagers have been hurt! And we even saw that gigantic creature in the mountains!"

"We probably disturbed it, that's why it appeared! If we leave it alone, it's do the same eventually!" Shinju explained furiously.

"Eventually? Let me tell you what will happen eventually- we either get wiped out, or we are forced to leave this village!" one of the older villagers argued.

"All right, enough, please. You all need to return to your home. Let us handle it from now on," Captain Kimura tried to placate the angry villagers.

"All you do is kill the monsters that show up! That's the reason why they kept attacking!" Shinju screamed at Kimura.

"And you will let an entire village get wiped out because you don't approve of what we do!"

"Shit," Ren uttered as Kohaku walked over, her face full of anger.

"You were my sister, Kohaku! Why did you join up with GEAR?"

"I joined GEAR to protect people from anything that threatens them! All you do is complain that we kill monsters over and over!"

"You and your fellow killers never gave them a chance!"

"They didn't allow us to try and settle things peacefully! Are you stupid or something?"

"What did you call me!?" Shinju shouted as she and Kohaku grabbed each other by the collar as Raptor Team tried to pull them apart.

"ENOUGH! SHUT UP!"

Rodney's voice was akin to an avalanche. Everyone turned to see him carrying a fire extinguisher in his hands.

"You two want to have a catfight do it where I can't see you both! I see you both arguing again, I'll introduce you both to extinguish-fu right here, right now," Rodney threatened as he swung the fire extinguisher around menacingly.

Everyone stared at him silently.

"Ah, good, peace and serenity. That's how a village is supposed to be. Well, Dr Kurosaki, I'll go look at those craters with some soldiers," Rodney said to Dr Kurosaki, beaming like a schoolkid getting a double cheeseburger special with chocolate sundae as he walked towards the field with a measuring tape and the fire extinguisher, with two GCI soldiers nervously following him.

* * *

"Damn, everybody listens to Rodney," Hideki said as he and Jake unloaded the Veloci-cles from the Storm Kestrel and Owl.

Toru had been busy for the past two weeks, having finished the Veloci-cles while the others were at Australia assisting Ghost Team. The Veloci-cles, as Toru had named them, were modified dirt bikes used for fast travelling through forests and mountains. The Veloci-cles were equipped with a small double-barrel laser weapon that fires shots that has about half the power of a standard Dual Shooter shot and a communicator.

"Toru has been bugging us to test them out, well, here we go," Jake said as he revved up one of the Veloci-cles.

"Dean, stay here with Ren and Kohaku. Yuka, Jake, with me. We'll scout the mountain and forest, see what we can find," Hideki said to the rest of Raptor Team.

As Dean headed off to find Ren and Kohaku, Yuka and Jake ride off after Hideki towards the mountains.

"So, your brother, Rodney… Just what is he?" Hideki asked.

"No idea… just that he stopped being normal after he entered secondary school back in my country. That would be around middle school age in Japanese terms."

"He's technically half-insane," Yuka added as they moved up the mountain trail.

Meanwhile, back at the village, Rodney was looking at the marks on the field.

"Hmm… Looks like a carpet bombing… The vilalgers said they saw a monster, I should go ask them what it look like," he said to himself as he turned around, only to bump into someone.

"Ouch! Be careful, young man," a monk said as Rodney caught him before he fell.

"Sorry, mister. But what are you doing here… I don't recall any temples around here," Rodney said.

"I'm a wanderer. By the way, you dropped this, young man."

The monk stuffed something into Rodney's hands before walking away.

"Hm, he's behaving stranger than me," Rodney muttered to himself.

Looking down at his hands, Rodney realized that the monk have given him a USB drive.

"I don't remember having any USB drives. This belong to any of you two?"

Both GCI soldiers shook their heads, confused about the whole thing. Rodney stared at the USB drive, suspicion written all over his face. He then looked up, but the monk had disappeared.

"Strange footprints," Hideki said as he and Yuka investigate a large imprint on the mud somewhere in the middle of the forest near the mountains while Jake kept an eye out for danger

Having spent an hour searching the mountains, the Veloci-cles have reached their limit in transversing the mountain terrain, forcing the three of them to give up and head to the forest, stopping by at the village to refuel. They have just reached an area in the middle of the forest when Jake spotted the footprints.

"Whatever made this footprint must be quite heavy, given the imprint," Yuka said.

"Yeah. Let's see what Toru and Ayane can find," Hideki added as he radioed back to Bastion Cove.

"Toru here, what's up?"

"Toru, can you get a scan of our current location? There's a footprint here I need you to identify."

"No problem, bringing one of the SCAN Satellites into position."

At Bastion Cove, Toru, Ayane and Captain Iketani watched as the satellite broadcast a live feed of the location where Jake, Hideki and Yuka are at.

"Look at the size of that print," Toru said as he zoomed in for a closer view.

"Could it be a Gomora?" Ayane asked as she held Gommy up.

The mini-Gomora chirped at the mention of his original giant counterpart.

"Interesting. It seems there really is a monster somewhere near Hachifuji. This proves that the villagers were not seeing things. Stay alert, you all," Iketani said.

"No data," Toru said, sounding surprised.

"What do you mean, no data?" Captain Iketani asked.

"I've scanned the print and brought up all monsters and aliens whose footprints matches the one Hideki and Co. found. But the footprint is too large, even for a Red King."

"What about the craters?"

"I've picked up some energy residue from the craters. But the energy reading doesn't match any of the monsters in SCAN Datafiles," Ayane replied.

"What kind of energy is it?"

"Heat, some magnetic power, appears to be fired in quick succession."

"Interesting… Very interesting… Hideki, you guys go get some rest. Toru and Ayane will see what else they can dig up using the energy readings and footprint."

"No problem, Capta- what was that?"

* * *

Back in the forest, Hideki and Yuka drew their Dual Shooters and aimed at some bushes that had just given a rustle. Jake stared at them for a moment before cautiously making his way towards the bushes, his Blitz Sniper Rifle pointed at them. Slowly, he aimed at the bushes, and then poked the gun in.

"Ouch!"

"Show yourself. Get out of the bushes, now," Jake said in a stern voice.

Three kids, around ten to twelve, came out from behind the bushes sheepishly. Upon seeing them, Jake dropped his rigid expression to a more friendly one.

"What are you three doing here. Who are you all?" he asked, holstering his Blitz.

"We… we're from the village," the tallest of the kids replied.

"We were looking for Golza!" the girl added.

"Golza?"

"Yes! The old monk said that the monster's name is called Golza! He said it was from another world!"

"Shh, Sakura! They are from GEAR! If we tell them about the monster they'll kill it!"

"Nah, we don't do that anymore, unless the monster is stomping buildings and trying to eat people. We take friendly monsters to an island called the Garden where they make friends with other monsters nowadays," Hideki explained.

"You don't shoot them anymore?" the third kid asked.

"Only if we're forced to, but we usually shoot somewhere else first to turn the monster back, unless it's proven itself to be dangerous," Yuka added

"What are your names?" Jake asked.

"I'm Yoshi. This is my sister Sakura and my friend, Souji," the tallest kid introduced them.

"We should take them back," Hideki said.

"What about the investigation?"

"We have a name for the monster now. I guess it won't hurt much to delay th- what?"

The ground was shaking suddenly, followed by a strange roar. All six looked up just to see a large lizard like creature whose head appears to be helmeted stomping towards them.

"Let me guess- that's Golza," Jake said as he pointed at the monster.

"Oh crap, go, go!" Hideki said as he, Jake and Yuka grabbed one of the kids each and went for the Veloci-cles.

"Hold on tight," Yuka said to Sakura, who was on her bike as the others revved up their engines.

"Wait, he's not-" Sakura said only to be drowned out by Golza's roar

The six of them quickly ride off, with Golza chasing them.

Back at Hachifuji Village, everyone has been put on alert as the lookouts saw Golza emerging from the forest. The GCI soldiers, who have set up mortars at the village facing the forest, prepared to fire as Hideki and his party emerged from the forest. Seeing them, Rodney rushed towards the mortar teams, screaming at them not to fire. Golza fired a purple energy beam at the fleeing motorbikes, but missed completely, leaving burnt marks all over the ground.

"The bikes are out of range! Fire, now!" Captain Kimura ordered.

"Wait!" Rodney said, but the soldiers fired anyway.

At the same time, two soldiers were trying to prevent Kohaku's sister, Shinju, from running towards the mortar teams.

"Stop! Don't attack it!" she shouted, but they fell on deaf ears.

The mortar rounds were not really hurting Golza either, but it appears to be in some pain. It charged up another energy beam, but stopped halfway suddenly.

"What is that creature up to?" Kimura asked Rodney, who shrugged.

Golza turned around instead, and simply walked back into the forest.

"What were you all thinking, attacking it?" Shinju barked at Kimura.

"Lady, we're trying to protect you and your village!"

"You do not have the right to just randomly attack any monster that shows up just because you think they are going to be a threat!"

"Look, miss. We usually miss our first few shots on purpose. This gives our targets a chance to turn back," Ren tried to explain.

"Really? What about the Alien Metron? And the five hundred and twenty people in Osaka?"

A silence fell upon all GEAR personnel at the area. Yuka looked at everyone, confused about what just happened.

"Shinju, go back," Kohaku said to her younger sister.

"Why, did I hit a nerve or-"

"Go back, now. You're scaring the children," Kohaku repeated, her voice firm.

Shinju wanted to say something, but something about the way Kohaku was staring at her caused her anger to subside.

"Sorry," she whispered to Kohaku before turning around and walking off.

Kohaku also turned and walk away, disappearing behind one of the houses. Ren looked at the direction where she went, and then got up to look for her. Just as he suspected, Kohaku was squatting behind the house, tears flowing down her cheeks.

"Kohaku, it's not your fault," Ren tried to assure her.

The medic simply buried her face in her arms.

* * *

"Christmas 2012, the day monsters started reappearing on Earth once more, marked the creation of the newest Earth Defense Force, Global Emergency Active Responders, otherwise known as GEAR. GEAR officially became active in February 2013, but at the same time, it was hit by multiple scandals, the most critical one being the unjustified killing of a family of Alien Metron," Rodney explained to Yuka as the two of them along with Dean and some GCI soldiers sat around a campfire as the moon emerged from the clouds

"Worst, the UFO used by the Alien Metron was designed to attack anything that threatens the safety of the family. With the entire family killed, there was no one able to stop the UFO from going crazy. It attacked the nearest city, leaving five hundred and twenty dead before GEAR managed to shoot it down," Dean continued.

"Kohaku and her sister were in the area at that time. Both of them witness the murders and the resulting carnage."

"You mean, they saw the GCI soldiers kill the family of Metrons?" Yuka asked.

"Yeah, they could not do anything but watch. Shinju developed a hatred for GEAR after that, seeing them any every past Earth Defense organizations as responsible for the multiple alien attacks on Earth."

"But if Kohaku knows that, why did she join GEAR?"

"To prevent such a tragedy from happening again. Big dreams, multiple attempts, surprisingly successful to a certain point," Rodney said as he cooked some sausages over the fire.

"Where you get them from?" Jake asked.

"I carry some with me."

"Gimme one."

"All mine," Rodney replied as he munched on two of the sausage.

As Dean and Rodney began fighting over the sausages, Yuka got up and headed over to an old church where the GCi soldiers have set up base. Dr Kurosaki was checking on the seismic readings while Kohaku and Ren were sitting at one corner where they have set up a temporary medical station. Hideki and Kimura were on the second floor discussing about how to fight off the monster they are now calling Golza. Jake was in the room of the church's tower, overlooking the forest, his Blitz Sniper Rifle beside him. Yuka got food before bringing them up to the tower.

"Hey, got any food? I heard we're supposed to survive on appetizers these few days. HQ ain't giving us enough food," Jake asked when he saw Yuka open the door.

"Bread and cream potato soup. That's all we have today," she replied as she laid out the food on the floor.

"What, that's all? Ah, whatever. They should give us more supplies if they want us camping out for a few days. Rodney's got some sausages with him but he's not sharing. Speaking of which, I saw him talking to the three kids we found in the forest not long after Gola- Golza, left," Jake said as he grabbed some of the bread and stuffed them into his mouth.

"So, about Kohaku and Shinju…"

"Oh, so you know about it now? Yeah, their relationship was really damaged the moment Kohaku decided to join GEAR."

"Does she know why Kohaku wanted to join GEAR?"

"Yes, but she's let her hatred of GEAR blind her to Kohaku's intents. Doesn't mean that she does not care, though. You saw how she reacted when Kohaku confronted her after the whole Gozza thing."

"Golza."

"Yeah, Golza."

Just then, Yuka, whose senses are more powerful than a human due to being an Ultra, heard something coming from outside. Quickly, she went over to the window, staring out at the forest.

"Yuka? What's wrong?"

"Jake, there might be more than just one monster in the forest," Yuka said, her expression one of concern.

* * *

Rodney was sleeping inside one of the GCI Armoured Vehicles when the sound of children woke him up. It was morning, and the whole place was covered in a light fog. Grabbing his glasses, he put them on and looked out the window, just in time to see four figures, three child-sized and one adult, making their way to the forest.

"What the hell?" Rodney mumbled to himself as he got out of the vehicle, putting on his kevlar and grabbing a shovel as a weapon.

As he silently ran towards the forest, he crashed into someone.

"Ouch! Huh, Rodney?" Kohaku's voice filled his ear.

"Damn, so it was you and Ren. I thought I saw someone running to the forest."

"Er… We came out because we saw those figures before bumping into you," Ren replied.

"We better follow them. I'm worried that they might cause trouble," Rodney replied.

"Let's take the Veloci-cles. We might be able to catch up to them."

"No, too noisy. We better go one foot. It's really misty, so try not to get separated," Rodney replied before heading into the forest, with Ren and Kohaku following.

The three of them searched the forest for the four figures, keeping a safe distance from them while making sure that they aren't too far away to miss them. Eventually, they arrived at a clearing.

"What the-" Kohaku uttered before Ren clasp his hand over her mouth and pull her behind a large tree.

"Shh!"

Both of them peered over to see the monster called Golza sitting against the mountain, a large wound on its shoulders that appeared to have just healed. Shinju and the three kids Jake, Yuka and Hideki had met in the forest earlier were with it, leaving some food on the ground for it. The two of them watch as Golza gingerly picked up the food with its fingers and threw them into its mouth.

"They're feeding it!" Ren whispered.

"Oh no, don't tell me Shinju's controlling it?" Kohaku muttered in dismay, wondering what her sister was up to.

"Interesting… this proves my theory right," Rodney said out loud, standing on one of Golza's legs.

Everyone, including Golza, turned to stare at him in surprise.

"What are you doing here!" Shinju shouted at him, more surprised than angry.

"Wait, Shinju nee-chan, he's on our side!" Sakura said.

"He said Golza didn't attack the village, and that GEAR has got it all wrong," Yoshi added.

"He said there's other monsters in the forest that were responsible," Souji finished.

"What do you mean by other monsters?" Shinju asked.

"Before I answer that, Ren, Kohaku! Come out!"

Left with no other choice, Ren and Kohaku came out from their hiding place.

"What are you doing here?" Shinju asked.

"Would you believe, following you," Kohaku replied curtly.

"Rodney, you seem to know what is going on, explain," Ren asked Rodney, who gave a smile that appeared less crazed than usual.

"Golza isn't the culprit. When his beam attack hit the ground yesterday, it left a line of charred ground, completely different from the craters we found. Also, it stopped at the forest edge and did not try to attack the village. Our ground weapons are so small all they do to monsters is annoy them, unlike the weapons on the Storm Birds."

"I don't get it," Ren said, scratching his head.

"Okay, I'll explain in idiot terms- there's another monster trying to attack the village. And looking at Golza's wound, it seems he tried to stop it."

"How did you come to this conclusion?" Kohaku asked.

"That's a bite mark."

"You could have told us earlier, Rodney. Why are you protecting Golza in the first place, Shinju?" Kohaku asked with slight anger.

"He saved my life, that's why."

"How?" Ren asked, raising an eyebrow.

Shinju pulled her sleeves back to reveal abrasions.

"Two days after a strange light shot down into the mountains from the sky, I was trekking up the mountain when I slipped and fell. Something caught me and when I turned to look, there he was. At first, I thought Golza was going to eat me, but instead he put me back onto the ground and shuffled away. A monk was watching nearby and he told me who that monster was."

"You still could have told us, Shinju," Kohaku muttered.

"Your friends aren't very willing to listen."

"We could have hunted for the other monster instead!"

"I don't want you guys starting another monster rampage!"

"Look here, you two don't really hate each other, right?" Rodney said, now having his normal crazed smile back on his face.

"We… don't," both sisters replied, hanging their heads.

"All this fighting between you two is because of the Metron incident, right? Shinju, you knew that Kohaku joined GEAR to prevent such an incident from happening again, but while you accepted it, the anger you had towards GEAR made you unable to admit it, so you keep telling yourself that it was a betrayal, right?"

"I… I don't know…"

"And Kohaku thought that her sister hated her for joining GEAR and grew distant from her, resulting in both sisters becoming hostile towards each other."

"Wait, you knew about this?" Ren asked Rodney, who grinned.

"Psychology is a side hobby of mine, though everyone else says I need to see one! Ha, ha, ha," Rodney replied as he folded his arms, threw his head back and laughed.

"Okay, so what now? Your folks won't believe what I told you," Shinju asked.

"Dr Kurosaki can arrange for Golza to be transported to the Garden. I'll keep the trigger-happy morons back," Rodney replied.

"Ren, where are you?" Jake's voice came through the radio in Ren's helmet.

"We're, er… investigating the forest, why?"

An explosion was heard, along with soldiers shouting.

"We're under attack by two bird-bat creatures, so get back here on the double!"

Golza gave a low, angry growl and got up, heading straight for the village.

"I'm guessing whatever is attacking the village is the one that bite him," Rodney said.

"Golza, wait!" Shinju shouted, but Golza was now runnin towards the village.

* * *

"Dammit, we can't get to the Birds!" Hideki cursed as he and Dean dodged behind a fallen tree.

Two bird like creatures were attacking the village, and Raptor Team and GCi soldiers have been spraying fire at them. Ammo was running low, however, and the mortars aren't reachin them. The monsters themselves were firing bolts from the eyes, and a number of GCI soldiers are already injured. Kimura was busy shouting orders to his men to get the injured out of the combat zone.

Jake and Yuka dodged behind a house as a series of bolts missed them by inches.

"What the hell are they?" Jake asked.

"Hell if I know!" Yuka replied as she loaded the last of her cartridges into her Dual Shooter.

"They are called Melba. They're from another world, like Golza," a monk said.

"ARGH! Where you come from?" Jake and Yuka screamed in unison.

"No time to explain, we need to lure them away from the village," the monk replied.

"Hey, wait a minute, you're the monk we bumped into three weeks ago!" Jake uttered in surprise.

"I'm surprise you remember me, young man," the monk said as he pulled his hat off.

Yuka shrieked in horror.

"M-m-m-master Leo?"

"What? He's Leo?"

"Yes, I am. It seems you're-"

A loud blast cuts Leo off, causing dust to fall on the three of them.

"It seems you're aware of Yuka's real identity," Leo finished what he wanted to say.

"Okay, what are you doing here? Where's Master Astra?" Yuka asked.

"I am investigating the Verach Seijin. They appeared not long after we found you. I am trying to find out what they intend to do on Earth. They resurrected monsters from other worlds that were sent to the Monster Graveyard to attack our Earth," Leo, also known as Gen Otori, explained.

A roar is heard, causing everyone to turn. Golza emerged from the forest, firing his beam attack at the two Melbas. The three monsters exchanged beam attacks, and golza swipes at them when they are within melee range.

"Funny, they worked together in Dyna's world," Gen/Leo commented.

"Dyna?"

"I'll explain everything to you later, Jake," Yuka said.

Golza managed to grapple one of the Melbas, but the other Melba seize the opportunity to divebomb him, causing him to fall. The first Melba then bite down on his wound, causing it to bleed again. The two Melbas then proceed to attack with their eye bolts again.

"You guys are clear to transform. No one can see you," Jake said to them.

"Okay," Yuka said as the Shield Bracers appeared on her wrists.

"I shall help you, Aegis. I have said earlier that they are from another world, which means their physical attributes are different from the monsters of this world."

"You sure? You haven't been in a real fight since Alien Reflect."

"Don't forget who trained you. And Zero," Leo retorted as he drew both his hands back and punch his left hand forward.

"LEOOO!"

A flash of light and Ultraman Leo appeared, challenging the Melbas.

"Does he shout his name everytime he transforms?" Jake asked.

"He, 80 and Mebius. I'm not gonna do that though," Yuka replied sheepishly as she transform into Aegis.

The two Melbas found themselves having to deal with two Ultras now. Both Ultras rushed the Melbas, quickly dealing a number of blows to them. Leo catches one of them and wrestle it to the ground while the other Melba took flight with Aegis in pursuit.

At this point, Kohaku, Ren, Rodney, Shinju and the three kids have made it out of the forest.

"Crap, they're fighting already," Ren said.

"C'mon, to the Storm Sparrow," Kohaku replied as she ran towards the Storm Sparrow, taking the pilot seat instead of her usual gunner seat.

"You're flying?" Ren asked.

"I owe my sister."

"You and your sister owe each other nothing."

"I knew that she didn't really hate me for joining GEAR. But I was so angry with her that I did the same thing as she did to herself- I used my anger to deceive myself. If I had tried to be patient towards her and stayed with her, we wouldn't have spend two years having a cold war," Kohaku explained.

"All right," Ren sighed as he got into the gunner seat.

"Golza! Are you all right?" Shinju called out as she and the kids ran towards the injured monster.

Now that the Melbas are busy with the Ultras, the rest of Raptor Team took the chance to get to their fighters. Within moments, they had joined in the fight, blasting away at the Melbas while Leo and Aegis tangled with them. Leo punched the second Melba a few times and kept it grounded. He then applied a chokehold on 2nd Melba before suplexing it onto the ground. Then, still holding on to 2nd Melba, he judo tosses it behind him.

Aegis, on the other hand, was engaged in a dogfight with the first Melba. As they exchanged energy attacks, the Storm Sparrow, Kestrel and Owl provided backup by attacking 1st Melba from behind. As Melba dodged the attacks, it noticed Golza still lying on the field, with Shinju and the kids tending to him. Giving a cackle, it fired several eye bolts at their direction.

"No!" Hideki shouted as he turned the Kestrel around to intercept the attack. On the ground, the kids saw the attack coming and grabbed Shinju, who turned to watch in horror as the attack came closer.

The attack hit home, but not the intended target.

Everyone watched in horror as the Storm Sparrow crashed onto the ground, badly damaged.

"Damit, Kohaku! What were you thinking, pulling a stunt like that?" Ren shouted as he removed his helmet, blood streaking down his head.

When Kohaku didn't reply, Ren quickly opened the cockpit and checked on her. Kohaku was unconscious, with a head wound. Ren pulled her out of the Sparrow and check her pulse.

"Oh, no, no, no… Kimura! Get the medics here!" Ren shouted through his helmet's radio as he felt Kohaku's pulse.

"Kohaku, no…" Shinju uttered as she approached, holding her sister in her arms as GCI medics arrived to tend to her.

Jake, Hideki and Dean watched in stunned silence from their fighters. Golza groaned as he tried to reach out to the humans on the ground, clearly feeling their anger anguish Leo, distracted by the scene, loses his grip on 2nd Melba, who flew away screaming in pain and fear. But it was Aegis who was affected the most. Seeing Kohaku motionless on the ground, Shinju and Ren trying to wake her up and the remaining Melba cackling away, rage began building up in her.

Letting out a primal cry, Aegis is surrounded by purple-coloured energy as she transforms into Nightingale Form. Turning towards the Melba, she unleashed a brutal attack on it, unloading blow after blow on it. The Melba tried to escape, but Aegis fires black bots of energy on its wings, ripping into them and causing it to plummet to the ground. Aegis than began a beatdown on the 1st Melba, going as far as to put it in an ankle lock.

A cracking sound indicated that Aegis had snapped Melba's ankle. As it rolled around in pain, Aegis grabbed its other leg, preparing to do the same when a green laser is shot into her shoulder.

Aegis turned around, only to see the Storm Owl behind her.

"What are you doing? Calm down, dammit!" Jake shouted at her.

Aegis turned to look at Melba, then back at Jake in the Storm Owl.

"This isn't you! What you're doing now is no different to what that Melba did just now!" Jake added.

Aegis turned to look at melba again, and realizes what she had done. Leo looked at her and shook his head disapprovingly.

"End it, Aegis. Put it out of its misery. That is the least you can do for it," he said.

Nodding slowly, Aegis pulled her arms into an 'X' position, charging energy into them, then spreading them out sideways quickly and into an 'L' shape, similar to how she fires her Lumiante Shot. This time, however, the beam was purple and white in colour instead of the rainbow-coloured beam that usually shoots out from her arms. The blast hits Melba, obiliterating it instantly. Aegis then walked towards Golza.

"We're losing her," one of the medics said.

"Please, not like this… we've only just patched up… Kohaku, wake up, please," Shinju begged as she shook Kohaku's shoulders. The raptor Team medic did not stir.

Aegis bent down and placed her hand on the ground, palm facing up. Ren looked at her, then realize what she wanted. Picking up Kohaku, he placed her on Aegis' palm. Within moments, Kohaku was bathed in white light and her woudns started disappearing.

Kohaku gasped and opened her eyes. Sitting up, she began coughing before realizing that she was sitting on Aegis' hand.

"Aegis…"

After Kohaku got off her hand, Aegis turned to Golza and placed her hands on his wounds, healing them like she did to Kohaku. Finished with her job, Aegis then took off into the sky, with Leo following suit.

* * *

It was evening, and GEAR was preparing to leave Hachifuji. Shinju and Kohaku were trying to catch up while the guys helped the GCI soldiers load their items into the GCI Armoured Vehicle.

"I hope to see you again, Shinju. And I'm sorry I didn't try to solve our issues that time. I shouldn't have storm out of the house."

"Me too. I should have accepted the truth instead of letting my anger take over me and try to convince myself that you betrayed my feelings," Shinju replied.

"I guess we're pretty much on the same boat."

"Yeah, I guess."

Both girls looked at each other awkwardly, then laughed and hugged each other before Kohaku turns to return to her teammates.

"Bye bye, Kohaku nee-chan," Yoshi, Souji and Sakura called out as they waved at her.

Meanwhile, Yuka sat on a log, head bowed as she contemplated about what happened during the fight.

"Still upset? You should learn to forgive yourself," Jake said as he joined her.

"I should not have lost control of my emotions…"

"At least we won."

"So why do I feel so empty inside?"

"Hey, you two still moping about what happened?" Rodney asked as he and Dr Kurosaki walked up to them.

"Is Golza-"

"He is being moved to the Garden as we speak. I find him an interesting specimen. This is the first time we are housing a monster from another world," Dr Kurosaki answered the question before Jake finished asking.

"How did you know?"

"Him, of course," Dr Kurosaki said as she gestured at Gen Otori, who had also just arrived.

"Le- Mr Otori?"

"No need for the cover stories, you two. We already know who he really is, though most people only remember him as the lone survivor of MAC," Dr Kurosaki said.

"Leo is joining GEAR as a consultant," Rodney explained.

Yuka and Jake dropped their jaws.

"What?"

"Yes, I plan to join GEAR as a consultant given the recent increase in monsters from other worlds being sent to Earth, but also because I want to see to Yuka's training," Gen said, a smile on his face.

"No, not training…" Yuka said faintly.

"Why not?" Rodney asked.

"Leo's training is like sending you to Hell within Hell," Yuka admitted.

"Hahaha, I guess you could say that's punishment for your temper," Jake laughed.

"You too, Jake," Gen suddenly said.

"What? Why?"

"You shot my brother's student! Of course you must be punished as well."

This time, it was Yuka's turn to laugh.

In the meantime, Umbrager and Espian watched from the forest, glaring at Yuka and Gen.

* * *

Raptor Team Profile: Moriumi Kohaku (森海 琥珀)

Age: 23/Height: 170cm/Weight: 50kg

Hair: Long hair tied in ponytail with fringe, dyed brown/Eyes: Brown

Score for the Three Tests: Combat 39, Flight 41, Rescue 46

A gentle, kind-hearted lady, she is the big sister of Raptor Team. Having been trained as a nurse in Australia, she quickly developed into a skilled field medic shortly after joining GEAR which led to her becoming a member of Raptor Team. Her humble nature belies the fact that she actually came from a rich family. Currently dating Aojima Rennosuke 'Ren' and serves as gunner of the Storm Sparrow

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Name: Golza

Origins: Ultraman Tiga/Dyna

The first monster to appear in Tiga's world, it destroyed two of the three giant statues with the help of Melba and escaped from Tiga during their first battle, only to come back stronger than before

Name: Melba

Origins; Ultraman Tiga

The second monster to appear in Tiga's world, bursting from Easter Island. It helped destroy two of the three giant statues with Golza, but ended up becoming Tiga's first kill

Name: Ultraman Leo

Origins: Ultraman Leo

A member of the Ultra Brothers, he came to Earth after his home planet was destroyed and was eventually adopted by Ultraman King alongside his twin brother Astra. Known to be a master martial artist as well as having stronger physical abilities

* * *

**Chapter 13: Wheelchair Warrior**

A new sergeant from GEAR Combat Infantry, Seiji Takehiro, befriends Raptor Team. At the same time, the arrival of a mysterious alien girl causes some of Yuka's lost memories to resurface while Toru becomes attracted to her. However, she also catches the attention of General Izuki, the paranoid anti-Aegis member of GEAR Japan's Board of Directors, forcing Raptor Team and their allies to face off against General Izuki's Shadow Squadron and his bioweapon, Orgamundo. There's one problem, though – Aegis doesn't know how to access her second form manually!

* * *

**Finally back on track after getting what felt like writer's block. So sorry about the long wait, but I've been stressed out these few months from work and health issues… This isn't one of my better chapters since I rushed it, but what was mentioned in this chapter will be somewhat related to events that will take place in a future chapter. Spoilers: Zero is gonna appear soon**

**Chapter 13's focus is on Toru, who you guys know is wheelchair-bound after a hit-and-run accident. The paranoid General Izuki Masaki, who I've mentioned a bit in previous chapters, will be making his first appearance. And there will be a lot of hand-to-hand fighting.**

**One more thing before I end this off: I'm currently writing another story. I was about ten years old when I came up with this idea for a fantasy story, but never really worked on it until now. It's fully fiction, and has a lot of mythological creatures and monster hunting. I'll probably post the first chapter on FictionPress around June so keep an eye out**


	13. Chapter 13: Wheelchair Warrior, Part 1

**Chapter 13: Wheelchair Warrior, Part 1**

"I'm gonna be sore for at least two weeks," Jake complained as he and Yuka slumped over a table in an abandoned temple on Kuroshio Island, their t-shirts wet with sweat and their bodies covered with bruises.

Gen Otori, whose real identity is Ultraman Leo, had joined GEAR Japan as a consultant in order to investigate the recent cases involving monsters from other worlds coming to this world. Few in Bastion Cove knows who he really is- everyone only knows him as the sole survivor of MAC. He had dragged Yuka to train as he felt she was lacking skills, and Jake because he shot her in order to get her to stop her rage-filld attack on Melba.

"Will you believe me if I tell you that he was taking it easy on us?" Yuka said, unable to speak three words without having to breathe heavily.

"What? I thought he wasn't holding back! He kicked me through the wall!" Jake groaned as he pointed his thumb at a human-shaped hole in the wall behind him.

"Zero had to endure more than what you two just had," Gen said as he walked into the temple, holding a basket of sweet corn and boiled potatoes.

"Zero?"

"Ah, Aegis,you didn't tell him about the saviour of the Land of Light? Zero is Ultraseven's son. He was exiled after trying to steal the Plasma Spark, the artificial sun of the Land of Light, which is also what changed us into Ultramen due to its immense power. Before him, another Ultra named Belial tried to steal it too, in order to gain more power. But the Plasma Spark injures him instead and he was banished, where he ended up getting his body taken over by Alien Reiblood and he became evil, his Ultra Spirit destroyed," Gen explained.

"I was training with Zero when I was called back to help deal with an incident on another planet. While I was there, Ultraman Belial escaped his prison and wrecked the Land of Light, defeating almost everyone on his own. Mebius, Seven and Ultraman Hayate were the only ones who escaped getting frozen. By the time I rushed back, however, Zero had returned and defeated Belial, restoring the Plasma Spark to the Land of Light," Yuka said.

"So this Zero…"

"He was redeemed for his past mistakes, and the Plasma Spark chose him to wield its power. He's travelling worlds at the moment with his new friends," Gen said.

"Two robots, a guy who uses illusions with mirrors and a firehead. They call themselves Ultimate Force Zero. They are extremely powerful, however, having saved dimensions and worlds a number of time. They're quite funny too," Yuka added.

"Cool. I'll like to meet them," Jake said as he ate a sweet corn.

"Well, Zero trained under Leo. I ended up trained by Astra instead," Yuka commented as she took a potato.

"Astra was more forgiving and held back a lot of times when he was training you, Aegis. I should talk to him about his training methods when I go back," Gen grumbled.

"Its getting late anyway. Finish up your dinner and we'll go back to Bastion Cove," he continued as he sat down to eat with them.

* * *

"Crap, I hate it when he's the first person we see in Bastion Cove everyday," Jake complained as he and Yuka entered the SRDID building on their way to the Barracks.

"Who's he?" Yuka asked.

"He, over there. General Masaki 'Dungbrain' Izuki. The moron who commissioned several illegal anti-Aegis projects. He recently found out that Rodney has been undermining his projects, and is now relying on another team of scientists and inventors to get his dirty jobs done."

Yuka looked at where Jake was pointing to and saw a tall, slightly overweight man with a stern expression talking to some GCI soldiers. The soldiers clearly look uncomfortable talking to him.

"C'mon, let's go another way. The alst thing I need is him talking about how Aegis is a threat and all that crap," Jake said as he pulled Yuka out the door by her hand.

As the two of them took a short cut throught the forested area of Bastion Cove to the Barracks, Jake stopped at a sewer entrance and went in.

"Jake, what are you doing?"

"Shortcut, and also because I need to find someone," Jake replied.

Left with no choice, Yuka followed him in. At first, it was dark and they relied on Jake's flashlight (he always carries one) to prevent stumbling over obstacles. The sewer was surprisingly dry, and as they went deeper, the walls started to shift from cement and ranite to metal. The two of them reach the end of the sewer.

"It's a dead end," Yuka said.

"That's what you think," Jake replied as he knocked on the wall, knocking it to the tune of 'Baa Baa Black Sheep'.

"Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump thump thump thump thump"

Another knocking was heard, although this one sounded metallic, in response to Jake. It was also in the tune of 'Baa Baa Black Sheep'.

"Deng, deng, deng, deng, deng, deng-"

The wall slided away with a 'shee' sound and Yuka found herself staring at Rodney.

"This is an escape route you nincompoop. I know you got yourself a girlfriend now, no need to show me everytime."

"Yuka isn't my girlfriend, you flaking zombie," Jake said defensively.

"Then why are you two blushing so bad that your faces are redder than my eczema flare up," Rodney replied slyly.

Both Jake and Yuka looked at each other. True enough, they were blushing.

"Anyway, why are you here?"

"General Izuki is in Bastion Cove."

"What, that dungbrain? He must be up to no good. Whenever he appears in Bastion Cove something in my lab screws up. This time things are going missing."

"Er… Jake, mind explaining?"

"Rodney left for the Hiroshima Research Facility which Bemstar attacked last month after some scientists hired by General Izuki tried to meddle with Rodney's experiments which resulted in one of them being killed and two others requiring amputations to save their lives. He was assigned to lead Lab C after he came back and he gathered his former aquaintances to form the team."

"Speaking of last month, it was crazy. Six monster attacks, including the ones outside Japan. Wonder what's going on," Rodney said as he returned to his work.

"What's your team doing?" Yuka sked as she and Jake entered the lab, which was quite large and had some fresh scorch marks on one wall.

"Not much. Most of my team are in Hong Kong doing some studies on a special flora they found on a mountain. Heard it's a new species. But not interested about it at the moment. Some of my stuff went missing from our lab last week. We're searching for it at the moment."

"What happened?" Jake asked as he pointed at the scorch marks.

"You don't want to know."

"You never introduced your team, Rodney."

"Yeah, you never introduced us," a voice said.

"Huh, who said that?" Yuka asked.

"Down here!"

Everyone looked down to see a dwarf holding a microscope.

"Well, since you asked, let me introduce you to our cell and gene expert, Tom Anderson from the United States. He's one of the USA's top geneticist and cell expert. He suffers from dwarfism, but don't let his size fool you- he's damn tough."

"Salutations," Anderson greeted the two as he moved to another table.

"He's the only guy here at the moment."

"Speaking of your missing items, what kind of item is it?" Yuka asked.

"Toru and I developed a… substance that can become… a homunculus… It was intended to serve as a lab assistant for dangerous tests, but we felt that it was too inhumane, creating an artificial lifeform and making it do dangerous things… The development of the Capsule Monsters were enough to make me feel guilty everytime they are sent to fight, not to mention that the homunculus could be used to create soldiers, so we decided to destroy it."

"So how did it go missing?"

"We created nine test tubes of the substance. We had disposed seven of them when Anderson discovered that one of the tubes was missing. Another item that went missing is a special experimental helmet that I designed to counter psychic mind-reading."

"Psychic?"

"Yeah, Toru and I were doing some research on psychic energy last year, around Christmas period. You came it around Febuary, Yuka. That makes it about two plus months ago?"

"Need help tracking it down?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, definitely. But with General Izuki crawling around, anything is possible. Once you get any info, let me know immediately."

"It's just a testube, why so anxious?" Yuka asked.

"One test-tube of that substance can create fifty homunculus. Imagine what will happen if someone finds out how to reproduce it," Rodney replied bluntly as he began lifting tables up to continue his search.

* * *

"Lousy night," Ren muttered as he sat down besides Kohaku in the cafeteria.

"Yeah, it always happens when General Izuki is around," Dean replied in agreement as he picked at his breakfast.

"Not just that, Captain Iketani went for his physiotherapy, which means Hideki just had his workload doubled," Ayane said.

The rest of Raptor Team looked up at the ceiling where, several stories up in the Ops Room, Hideki was busy answering phonecalls and typing reports while Toru manned the surveillance and SCAN system.

* * *

**dfox300's tidbit info:**

**Captain Iketani suffered a leg injury while test-firing the Pulse Launcher offscreen as mentioned in Chapter 5. He's still combat fit, but has been undergoing physiotherapy as well as being forbidden to fly in any of GEAR's combat aircraft.**

* * *

"Yeah, poor Hideki," Dean said as everyone solemnly nodded in agreement.

No sooner has those words came out of his mouth when a loud noise similar to a jumbo jet taking off is heard and the entire building started to shake. Trays and plates of food fell to the ground as a rather powerful tremor rocked the entire island. In the labs, scientists struggled to prevent their fragile equipments from breaking while guards struggled to maintain their balance.

"Everyone okay?" Jake asked as the moment the tremor stopped.

"Yeah, we're fine," Yuka said ashes helped Ayane up.

"Toru, Hideki, what happened?" Ren asked through a GCI soldier's radio.

"I think it was an asteroid or a falling UFO that caused the tremor. I've did a check on every part of the Bastion Cove with the security system. No damage to facilities at the moment apart from some broken windows. One injury reported- a GCI soldier fell from the stairs during the tremor and sprained his ankle. Other than that, we're fine. Otori Gen is with us as well," Toru answered through the intercom of the building.

"Anyway, you guys better come up to the Ops Room. Toru wants to give us something, and we might be getting busy real quick," Hideki added.

"Well, you heard our deputy leader. Let's go," Ren said to the rest.

"Isn't that the Pulse Launcher?" Ren asked as he pointed at the main weapon of the Lander Rhino, which had been detached and was lying on the table in the Ops Room.

"Yeah, I removed it from the Rhino. I've managed to configure it into a portable version, although its power has been weakened," Toru replied, grinning from ear to ear.

"So how to we lug this thing around? I'm not carrying something about the same size as me and running through the battlefield."

"You are strong yet you would complain about lifting a weapon that's about four times lighter than you?" Gen asked as he lifted the Pulse Launcher easily with one hand.

"Well, my strength is normal human standards," Ren replied softly as Gen placed the weapon back on the table.

"Watch," Toru said as he pressed a button on the Pulse Launcher.

Immediately, the Pulse Launcher began a Transformer-like transformation, with the length decreasing in size until it resembles a block of metal with bag straps on one side.

"Try carrying it," Toru said as he passed it to Ren, who put it on with hesitation.

"Hey… Feels like a normal backpack… Apart from the weight, it's quite nifty."

"It can still be reattached to the Lander Rhino. Speaking of which, Rodney passed me some plans two week ago regarding two laser weapon systems he had designed which left a number of scorch marks all over his lab."

"That explains the wall," Yuka whispered to Jake.

"He seems to be trying to create some battle vehicle. I saw him driving a Petersbilt into base two days ago, and yesterday he drove a bus in, then went out, and returned with another truck. Wonder what he is up to?"

"Interesting," a rather mean voice said.

Everyone looked up to see General Masaki Izuki entering the room with a GCI sergeant. General Izuki's eyes were fixated on the Pulse Launcher.

"That is an interesting weapon," General Izuki commented as he traced his finger over the Pulse Launcher.

"How damaging is it against monsters?"

"Very, but not enough to slow them down," Toru replied uncomfortably.

"So it's useless then?"

"It can't slow them down, sir, but it can injure them."

"Hmph," General Izuki snorted.

"I hate him already," the sergeant whispered to Jake.

"Can this weapon be used against Aegis?" General Izuki asked.

"Sir, why would we use our weapons on an ally?" Hideki said, astounded.

"Wong did," Izuki retorted as he jerked his thumb at Jake.

"Sir, she was not herse-"

"Listen, Raptor Team. I am aware of your nauseating belief that this Aegis is our ally. I am here to let you understand that GEAR is dedicated to the peace of this planet Earth. I may have closed my eyes on that stupid project you call the Garden since those things living on that island can be… useful… when battle is required, but not aliens! Next time, I want you to-"

"You do not have authority over Raptor team, General. They are my men, not yours."

Everyone gave a sigh of relief as Captain Iketani entered the Ops Room, no longer needing a clutch to walk, accompanied by Captain Kimura of the GEAR Combat Infantry

"Captain Iketani… I see you've healed your leg," Izuki said sarcastically.

"Good to see you're still that paranoid, scheming prickhead I gave a black eye four years ago," Iketani replied coolly, drawing a bit of laughter from Raptor team.

"Now, then, General, I suggest you get your rotting carcass out of my room before Roderick comes up here with a chainsaw," Iketani continued.

The mention of Rodney's name was enough to make General Izuki pale. In the past, he had tried to get Rodney to create anti-Aegis weapons, only for Rodney to make them into Aegis-assist weapons instead. When he finally confronted him about it, Rodney blackmailed him with the photos Yagami Eiji took during his sneaking into the Hiroshima Facility, threatening to reveal them to the public.

"I better leave now, then," Izuki said as he approached the lift, only to scream and fall on the ground when the doors opened and out stepped Rodney.

"Why, hello, General," Rodney greeted joyfully.

Izuki did not even reply. Instead, he practically crawled on all fours into the lift. As the lift began going down, Rodney flipped open a powerbox and meddled with the wires.

"What are you doing?" Dean asked.

"Causing a jam, and making sure he can be heard" Rodney replied as he flipped a switch.

"Attention, Lift R is currently stucked between Floor 5 and 6. All engineers near the area are requested to fix the issue as soon as possible. One person is currently in the lift," a pre-recorded, polite female voice blared through every intercom in the building.

"Help! Let me out of here! Someone farted in this tin-can! Help!" General Izuki's muffled and frightened voice could be heard as well.

Rodney turned back to Raptor Team as they laughed their heads off. Even the stoic Gen had a amused look on his face.

"That was funny," Dean commented as he wiped a tear from his eyes.

"I had curry this morning, what could I do? Oh, you're the new sergeant, Seiji Takehiro, right?"

"Yes, I've just been assigned to Assault Unit Delta Squad. Nice to finally meet some friendly faces. Can't belive I had to accompany that sour-pus on my first day," the GCI sergeant, Seiji Takehiro replied.

"Due to a new system being integrated into the GCI, the three captains won't be sharing control over all the soldiers. Captain James will be in charge of Support Unit while Captain Nakamiya will be in charge of Guard Unit. I will be in charge of Assault Unit, which means my men and I will be spending most of our time assisting Raptor Team. Takehiro here will be in charge of Delta Squad from today onwards," Kimura explained.

"Your assistance will be greatly appreciated," Kohaku said.

"By the way, Shintaro, how is your physiotherapy?"

"Better than last time, Kimura. I can join in ground combat, but they still won't let me fly," Iketani replied.

"Ah, I almost forgot! The crashed UFO!" Toru suddenly exclaimed.

"What UFO?"

"The one that zoomed past Bastion Cove and caused the powerful tremor," Toru replied as he brought up a picture of a downed spaceship in a forest.

"Speaking of which, only the building you guys were in was affected by the tremor. All we detected here was the seismograph reading 2.4 magnitude from that building's area only.

"You mean there wasn't any seismic activity around this building?" Gen asked.

"Yeah."

"Speaking of which, my Phychic Detctor begin sounding off when the termor started," Rodney said.

"You what?"

"Toru and I created a device used to detect and measure phychic energy after some aliens were shown to display such power. When you guys head to the crash site, bring this along," Rodney explained as he handed over a hand-held device that resembles a hand-held searchlight with a small computer screen on its side.

"Okay, guys, let's move out. It's been a while since I did any field work," Captain Iketani said, clapping his hands twice.

"Sir, permission to go along with the ride?" Toru suddenly asked.

"Well, okay. You go with me in the Lander Wolf. The rest of you get into your respective Storm Birds and meet us at the crash site," Captain Iketani said.

As the rest of the team left the Ops Room, Rodney turned to Gen and held out the hard drive he gave him two days ago at Hachifuji Village.

"Ah yes, plug it in," Gen whispered.

"Ayane, plug this in," Rodney said to Ayane, the only Raptor Team member still in the Ops Room.

"What's that?"

"Leo passed this to me at Hachifuji," Rodney said.

Not realizing that Leo is actually Gen, Ayane plugged the drive into her computer. Immediately, the data in the drive began uploading itself into SCAN Datafiles under "Other Dimensions".

"What… what's it doing? Is it a virus?" Ayane panicked.

"No… seems like information… Look, Golza's info!" Rodney said excitedly as he pointed at Golza's name.

"This is very interesting," Gen added, putting on a façade of surprise.

"There must be like, a hundered over new monster data in here," Ayane said, still surprised by the new data.

* * *

"Thick haze," Ren complained as he and Hideki walked around the crash site.

GEAR had secured the site, but no one seemed willing to approach it, staying a good 50 feet away. Apparently, some GCI soldiers had strange things happen to them, such as their belts unclipping themselves and wrapping around their legs to trip them, a sergeant who found himself hanging upside down from a tree brach by his trousers and two soldiers who had their hair so entangled with each other that the medics were forced to shave them bald in order to free them.

"Everyone is saying that the whole area just got haunted within an hour of their arrival," Hideki replied.

"You think we should approach it?"

"Yeah, otherwise we won't know what's going on."

At the same time, Jake and Toru were scanning the area with the Psychic Detector.

"What does a reading of 430 mean?" Jake asked.

"Way off the charts. We tested it on a group of self-proclaimed psychics but only two gave an actual reading of 50 to 100. The rest were normal."

"What's a normal person's reading?"

"10 to 20. When Rodney and I were researching on psychic powers, we had a theory that everyone has psychic powers, except it is very weak and only triggers in unique situations. The two proven psychics we interviewed last year had a power reading flunctuating between 50 to 100- they were able to lift a cup a metre high by staring at it right in front of our eyes."

"But its still open for debate, right?"

"Yeah."

"What did you guys use to create this device?"

"Rodney managed to obtain some metal from the alien Jashrin that attacked Mebius ten years ago and some metal left behind by a Psychokino spaceship, and used them along with nanotechnology to create the metal used to read the psychic powers on this device. I'm not sure how he did it though, I'm not that good with nanotechnology."

"So the reading of 430 is way off the chart?"

"Yeah, but we don't seem to-"

"ARGH!"

Everyone looked up to see Ren and Hideki struggling to get their bootlaces untied from each other. It was a comical scene, but it also let Jake identify what was in the ship.

"Psychic powers and pranks? I think I know whose in there. Hey, Psychokino Seijin, come out, will you?"

In reply, a hatch opened in the spaceship, and a schoolgirl came out instead. She appeared 17, had medium length hair and a bored expression on her face.

"A schoolgirl?"

"What the-"

"Not what I expected."

"Psychokino Seijin tends to take on harmless appearances of whatever species live on the planet they landed on in order to pull off their tricks," Toru explained to the confused soldiers.

"How did you know who I was?"

"Er… the two morons whose bootlaces you tied together?"

"How should we address you? We can't keep calling you by your race," Toru asked as he wheeled over.

"Erm… I guess Rin will do," the Psychokino replied.

"I'm Toru, of Raptor Team, GEAR Japan. It's nice to met you."

"You too. I supposed you're going to take me back to Bastion Cove?"

"How did you- oh, yeah, I forgot you're a psychic race of alien," Toru replied sheepishly.

* * *

"This doesn't feel like an interrogation," Rin commented as she sat in front of Rodney, Toru, Captain Iketani and Tom Anderson.

"In name only. You know, that guy outside the lab," Rodney replied as Tom indicated General Izuki, who was standing outside Lab C and watching from the window.

"You guys don't seem to like him at all," Rin said.

Rodney and Toru looked at each other.

"I didn't know Psychokino Seijins can read minds," Toru said.

"The previous visitors only displayed telekinetic powers," Iketani responded.

"Well, at least we know now," Rodney said.

"Hey, sorry, but… I would like to speak with Toru privately," Rin said suddenly.

"Huh? Well… All right… You'll just force us out anyway if we don't comply," Rodney answered as he herded Tom and Iketani out of his lab.

"Why do you only want to-"

"You're the only one I can trust here, well, at least because you have the least potential of trying to hurt me. That friend of yours, Roderick, or Rodney as you all keep calling him, I can't read what is going on in his mind at all. And when I can't read someone's mind, it disturbs me a lot."

"Okay, whatever you say. But the others-"

"The short one keeps thinking how old I am, while the older one with the injured leg is too by the book. He's already making his way to where your organization leaders are situated to report on me. And that general you guys aren't very friendly with, he keeps thinking that I'm a threat."

Toru was surprised- Rin even knew that Captain Iketani had an injured leg without even asking about or seeing it. She also already know what kind of person he was. He had to admit, Captain Iketani is a very by-the-book leader, except when Raptor Team is in danger or when the situation calls for it.

"I didn't crash here by accident. Someone shot my craft down. Someone wanted me on Earth," Rin said suddenly.

"What? Wait, someone wanted you on Earth? You serious?"

"An energy blast hit my craft when I was near your planet. It was fired from your planet."

"You mean, someone knew your craft was nearby?"

"Exactly."

"Do you know who?"

"Only that he works for your organization. I think it was that Rodney character."

"Because you can't read his mind?"

"He is the first living organism whose mind I cannot read at all. It's like he's being protected by something."

"C,mon, he's not-"

"He's too shifty, and has a weird look on his face."

"Trust me, he's a bit on the crazy side, but he won't do such a thing."

"Well, we'll see about it," Rin replied, unconvinced.

* * *

"Well, you can stay here for now, Rin," Kohaku said as she and Yuka showed Rin to a guest room.

The Board of Directors have agreed that the Psychokino was not a threat and had offered to repair her spaceship, a small size vehicle that appears to be a one-pilot craft, so that she can leave Earth, although it will take a few months. She had been given a room near Raptor Team's bunk so that they could keep an eye on her as well as assist her in anything.

"Thank you. This room… it's quite nice."

"There's a view of the sea as well, so if you're ever feeling down, just look out the window and let your emotions out."

"You're really nice, Kohaku. Thank you again," Rin said as she blushed at Kohaku's gentleness.

"Well, I'll need to help out at the infirmary, so can you take over from here on, Yuka?" Kohaku said to Yuka as she placed her hands in an Anjali Mudra gesture before leaving.

"Heh, well, seeing as your psychic I guess there's no need to hide my identity, right?" Yuka said to Rin.

"Of course not, Aegis. Don't worry, I won't say anything to the others," Rin replied.

"To be honest, it's really tiring having to hide my identity from the others. Only Dr Kurosaki, Jake and Rodney knows about my identity."

"I'm surprised you let so many people know who you are," Gen said suddenly.

Yuka shrieked.

"How long have you been standing here, Leo?"

Gen facepalmed.

"Yuka, I have been walking behind you for the past ten minutes talking to Kohaku. You did not detect my presence?"

"Er… he, he," Yuka giggled nervously.

"Anyway, how did they find out about your identity? Jake won't really tell me at all."

"Well, I crash-landed outside Dr Kurosaki's hometown, Jake deduced my identity from observation and I was forced to transform in front of Rodney to save his friend. Rodney nearly fell out the Storm Owl when he saw me change, but he won't admit it."

"You seem to trust Roderick Wong a lot."

"Well, he's a unique member of his species."

"You do not trust him. Why?" Gen said suddenly.

"I can't see what he's thinking at all. I don't know how he is blocking my telepathy," Rin admitted.

"Well, Roderick has a penchant for some crazy actions, but he is the kind of person you can trust your life with. In fact, he's the one fixing your ship right now."

"What?"

"Don't tell me you're gonna chase him away from your spacecraft, now. He's the only one willing to go near it. Along with Chief Engineer Akagi."

Yuka gave Rin a reassuring smile, but Rin appears frustrated.

* * *

It has been three days since Rin crash-landed on Earth. While she has been getting along well with Raptor Team, she had not been quite friendly with Rodney. The eccentric scientist was too busy handling another outbreak of his skin problems to notice, but Toru wondered why Rin couldn't read his mind in the first place. It wasn't helping that her unfriendliness towards Rodney was because of that issue as well- she seem to be only able to trust others by seeing what they are thinking.

Toru pondered over it as he wheeled himself to Lab C to find Rodney, but was snapped out of his thoughts upon hearing shouting inside. Unsure of what to do, he stayed outside the door and eavesdrop on the quarrel.

"Look here, I am not feeding her to that metal freak machine you and your cronies at Lab A built! You want to make a weapon against Aegis, do it yourself!"

"You owe General Izuki, Roderick Wong! You've been messing with all his anti-Aegis plans! The Capsule Monsters were supposed to target her but you engineered them into her pets!"

"I owe him? I think I owe him blackmail material. You want me to give Yagami Eiji a call? I have every evidence I need to take your boss down. The only reason I withheld them was because I hoped he would outgrow his stupid beliefs but it seems I was wrong!"

"You will put your head on the chopping board for Aegis and not for humanity?"

"No, I will throw myself into a wood-chipper for Aegis and humanity, not paranoia! Now GET OUT!"

The sound of metal colliding with human flesh is heard, and the door suddenly opened, and a young man in a suit literally flew out, landing facefirst on the floor. As the man got up, clutching his broken and bleeding nose, Rodney stepped out of the lab, fire extinguisher in hand.

"You come back here again I will feed you to the Capsule Monsters," he threatened.

"You'll regret this," the man in the suit said defiantly and walked away.

"Rodney, what happened?" Toru asked as he approached Rodney, who watch the man in the suit storm off to the elevator

"Muramiya Itsuki, General Izuki's protege. He just stormed into my lab to threaten me, although I wonder how one threatens another by cowering at the nearest escape," Rodney said cheerfully, no evidence of him being in a bad mood fifteen seconds ago.

"Rodney, this is serious."

"Yeah, I know... Wait, is all of Raptor Team around?"

"They've been sent on their daily patrol. Anyway, I wanted to see you regarding 'the Egg'. How's it coming?"

"Oh, that… well… It's actually complete, but we haven't had a trial run yet."

"And the new weapons system?"

"Destructive. The Storm Kestrel's Skybreaker Laser Cannon system was integrated into it. This weapons system can only be used when all three are brought together by 'the Egg'. I haven't come up with a name for it."

"An upgraded Skybreaker Laser Cannon system? We should call this new system the Stormbreaker," Toru said.

"Er… no comment," Rodney replied, his face dropping.

"Anyway, I'm going to see what I can do about Rin's ship. It's proving difficult to fix," he continued.

"How's the progress, then? How much has been fixed?"

"Can't say for sure. The whole ship looked like someone fired a laser cannon at it or something… Fried systems, big hole through what I think is the engine… Kinda suspicious," Rodney explained as he wheeled Toru towards the corridor to the hanger.

_Rin said her ship was shot down… Can't believe Rodney's saying the same thing_, Toru thought. He wanted to tell Rodney about what Rin had said, but then realize that Rin was not going to like Rodney finding out that he and her are sharing the same suspicions. Besides, he wonder what Rodney will feel if he finds out that Rin doesn't trust him at all.

* * *

"Ah… What kind of metal is this? How are we gonna fix this ship?" Chief Engineer Akagi complained.

"We could use titanium? Or the scales I managed to get from Kagaiza?" Rodney offered.

"You meant that mirror-skinned monster that appeared at the tunnel construction site last month? I didn't know you were there."

"Nah, Jake collected the scales for me. Kagaiza was an ancient monster sealed within a mountain by a Chinese priest centuries ago. It has metallic scales that allows it to reflect all kinds of energy attacks. It was the first monster to make Aegis retreat in battle. For more information, look at chapter 6," Rodney explained.

"I didn't catch the last sentence. You said something?" Toru asked.

"I said we could use Kagaiza's scales to fix the ship. It is metal in origin anyway."

"Hey, Rodney, how's the ship going?" Hideki asked as he entered the hanger with Jake.

"We aren't progressing at all."

"Oh, Dad," Hideki said suddenly, his friendliness disappearing quickly.

"Hey, son," Chief Akagi replied, not even bothering to look up at his son.

"Er… we'll update you guys on the ship's condition. I should be able to get more help when my entire lab team returns from Hong Kong. So you won't mind… er… moving along?" Rodney said nervously, trying to diffuse the tension that was starting to rise.

"Yeah, I'll do that," Hideki said.

"Yeah, see you around," Chief Akagi said as well.

"Er… Rodney, you know… the Psychokino…"

"What about her?"

"Nevermind, I'm going back to check on her."

Rodney stared at Toru, slightly confused, as the latter wheeled out of the hanger.

"I'm going back to the Ops Room," Hideki said and left the hanger as well.

"What about you?" Rodney asked Jake.

"I think I'll help out."

"Good, good, the more the faster. You go bring those bolts and scrap metal over here. I'm gonna start patching the holes first before I start on giving it a titanium shell," Chief Akagi said.

* * *

"What do you mean, missing?" Rodney asked.

Dr Kurosaki had visited Rodney at his lab with some strange news when Toru and Rodney were discussing about the 'Egg' project they were currently working on. Apparently, two psychics they had interviewed last year when they were doing experiments on psychic energy had gone missing one week ago.

"According to the police, there were signs of struggles. Both psychics were alone at home when it happened."

"But, Dr Kurosaki, they're psychics! How is it that they cannot sense the presence of their abductors?"

"That's why I'm letting you know about this. I know you have a number of psychic devices in your lab. Has any gone missing?"

"Yeah, a helmet I designed to prevent telepathy. It disappeared one week ago…"

Toru suddenly realized something.

"This is not a coincidence. Someone in GEAR is up to no good," he concluded.

"Yes, and we might need your help in this. You're not just the only nanotechnology expert in bastion Cove, you're also our only psychic energy expert. Any idea if we can locate our missing psychics?"

"I'll see if I can modify the Psychic Detector to trace the energy residue," Rodney replied.

"The police will be relying on you two then. Good luck finding the missing psychics," Dr Kurosaki said as she left the lab.

"Ah, what's going on? I smell an evil plot about to succeed," Rodney moaned.

"Yeah, something doesn't add up. Rin getting shot down, psychics going missing, your stuff getting stolen," Toru added.

"Where's Raptor Team?"

"Hideki and Dean are patrolling the skies in the Kestrel, Captain Iketani, Ren and Kohaku are taking the new Archelon mini-submarine on its test run, and jake and yuka are patrolling the streets in the Lander Wolf."

"That's not good," Rodney said.

"Why?"

"You said earlier that someone in GEAR might be up to no good, right?"

"Yeah."

"Noticed how psychics are involved in this?"

"Yeah- oh crap, Rin. She's alone in her room at the moment," Toru said, suddenly realizing the danger the Psychokino was in.

"Toru! Toru!" Ayane's voice suddenly came through the the communicator on Toru's helmet, which he hung over on of his wheelchair's handlebar.

"Ayane, what's wrong?"

"They're taking Rin!"

"What?"

* * *

Rodney wheeled Toru into the garage, where Ayane said the men taking Rin were at.

"Damn it… I'm beat," Rodney said, having rushed all the way.

Men in black armour were loading Rin into a van. Rin had a strange helmet on, and she was unconscious and restrained.

"Hey! Where are you taking her?" Toru shouted as he pushed himself forward, slamming into one of the strange men, knocking his helmet off.

"What the…" Toru exclaimed in shock as he realized that the man had no face at all.

"No face? Wait… These are my homunculi! The last test-tube of the homunculi substance that went missing when I was disposing of them! Who the hell used it?"

"I did," a voice said.

Rodney and Toru looked towards the van, where the man in the suit who Rodney threw out of his lab earlier, Muramiya Itsuki, was seating inside.

"You scumbag! You steal from my lab?"

"Homunculi aren't such a bad idea. They don't question orders, they willingly die for you, no emotions, no feelings, no thoughts, the perfect servants," Itsuki replied.

"What? Why, you…!" Rodney shouted as he rushed at Itsuki, only to be stopped by the Homunculi soldiers.

"You faceless bastards, get out of my way!"

As Rodney fights off the three Homunculi, Toru wheeled towards the van, attempting to pull the unconscious Rin out of it, only to get jumped by another Homunculus soldier who was inside. Not stopping for a second, Toru smashed his fist into his assailiant, knocking him back.

"C'mon, Rin, wake up," Toru said as he tried to pull Rin out of the van, only to be ambushed by more Homunculi.

"Damn you! Get off me!" he shouted as he punched at them ,knocking out two more Homunculi before another takes out a taser and shocks Toru into semi-consciousness.

"Toru!" Rodney shouted as he watch the Homunculi slap handcuffs on a dazed Toru before throwing him and Rin into the van, leaving his wheelchair on the floor.

Realizing that they were going to be taken, Rodney hurls the Homunculus grappling him with a sudden burst of superhuman strength, sending the Homunculus flying and landing onto an exposed pipe, which impales it through the chest. Rodney then runs towards the van, snapping the neck of another Homunculus without stopping, but the van drives off, with Itsuki laughing in the driver's seat.

Rodney cursed as he turned around, only to see Raptor Team's Veloci-cles parked near him. Toru had made about seventeen of them in all.

Pulling the helmet of one of the dead Homunculi off, Rodney leapt onto one of the Veloci-cle and drove off, wearing the helmet as he moved.

* * *

"What? Rin and Toru were kidnapped?"

Yuka and Jake were in the Lander Wolf when Ayane radioed in.

"Yes! G-g-general Izuki went into her room with three soldiers. I h-heard him threatening Rin when a bunch of black-armored men s-s-stormed into her r-r-room and began b-beating them up."

"Is the General safe?"

"Yes, b-but his men were m-m-murdered by the intruders. The G-g-general was kicked s-s-several times on the head and chest! I saw it all on the security camera! I-i-i was so scared I didn't dare to leave the O-o-ops Room until they w-w-were gone!"

"Ayane, calm down. Tell me what happened next," Jake said in a reassuring tone.

Yuka could hear Ayane trying to control her emotions. She had obviously been crying.

"I-I went to see if he was alright. He told me that Rin had been taken before going unconscious. Toru and Rodney tried to stop them, but Toru got taken as well. Rodney's chasing them on a Veloci-cle right now!"

"What! Send us his coordinates, now," Jake said urgently as he stepped on the gas.

As the Lander Wolf rushed to meet up with Rodney, the latter was having difficulty trying to catch up with the black van holding Toru and Rin, mostly because the Homunculi soldiers in the van kept shooting at him. Not only that, but a few more Homunculi soldiers appeared behind him, all of them riding black bikes.

"This is really not my day!" Rodney shouted as he threw a punch at one of the Homunculi, knocking it off its bike.

Another Homunculi approached him and took a swing with a pat, but Rodney grabbed the bat before pulling it out of its owner's hands, causing the Homunculi to fall off its bike as well. Rodney then proceeded to use the bat to knock the Homunculi soldiers off their bikes before picking up speed and catching up to the black van.

Realizing that Rodney was much more dangerous than he looks, Muramiya suddenly braked the van. Unable to stop itn time, Rodney crashed into the back of the van. His entire body slammed into the van as well when he was thrown off the Veloci-cle.

The van then sped off, with Rodney laying on the road bleeding profusely. As it disappeared round the corner, the Lander Wolf appeared.

"Oh no, Roderick!" Jake shouted as he leapt off the lander Wolf and rushed to his brother's side.

"Thank goodness, he's still breathing," Yuka said as she joined Jake at Rodney's side, checking his pulse.

A sudden roar caught their attention. Turning around, they saw a monster materializing from the air, landing onto the sea and roaring. It resembled a bear fused with multiple crustaceans.

"I'll settle my brother, you go deal with it!" Jake said to Yuka, who transformed into Aegis to engage the creature.

_Did it come in peace? _Aegis thought as she got into a grappling match with the monster. The monster overpowered her, picked her up and hurled her aside.

_Guess not,_ Aegis concluded as she picked herself up and launched herself onto the creature, then stepping back, charging her leg with electricity.

The creature turned around only to see Aegis using her Lightning Roundhouse on it. The attack hit home, but does not seem to have done much damage onto the creature.

The creature roared again and charged at Aegis, moving faster than she could react. Aegis found herself forced into a defensive position as the monster rained blows on her. Eventually, she found herself gripped by the monster, who proceeded to suplex her into the sea. Aegis got up, dazed and her Color Timer blinking.

"Aegis! Use Nightingale Form!" Jake shouted at her as Rodney regained counciousness.

Aegis nodded, but as she got into her fighting stance, she balked.

"Aegis? What's wrong?" Jake shouted.

"Nightingale Form… I don't think she knows how to activate it…" Rodney said, his voice indicating that his injuries aren't serious.

"You're awake! That was close, I thought I was gonna lose you! Wait, what do you mean, she don't know how to?"

Aegis suddenly gave a shout of pain. Jake turned back, only to see Aegis now being strangled by the monster. Energy flowed through the monster's arms, causing sparks to fly off Aegis as she struggled to break free.

Suddenly, a shout from above is heard as Leo came crashing down on the monster, causing it to lose its grip on Aegis.

"Aegis! You are too injured! Stand down and tend to Roderick!" Leo ordered.

"But Leo, I-"

"Now! I will handle this monster. You have more important battles ahead of you," Leo said, his tone even more stern this time.

Nodding, Aegis transform back into Yuka, landing beside Jake and Rodney, but the damage is already done. She fainted.

"Yuka!"

Jake picked up Yuka, checking her pulse.

"She's alive, but weak," he said.

"C'mon, get her into the Lander Wolf," Rodney said, his tone much more serious than normal.

"What about you? You alright?"

"Just a few cuts and abrasions, but best if I do an X-ray. Not sure if any of my bones are fractured," Rodney replied as he helped Jake get Yuka into the Lander Wolf.

As the Lander Wolf drove off, Leo continued his fight with the monster…

_To Be Continued_

* * *

Raptor Team Profile: Samegawa Toru (鮫川 亨)

Age: 19/Height: 169cm/Weight: 62kg

Hair: Shoulder-length, light brown/Eyes: Brown

Score for the Three Tests: -

A genius inventor and first operator of Raptor Team. Struck by a drunk driver while heading to take his Three Test to enter Raptor Team, he ended up becoming wheelchair-bound. He was still taken in due to his skills, however. Good friends with Ren and Rodney, he is known to be the one who creates the items Rodney thinks of, making them both a force to be reckoned with in the field of technology and science since the stuff they create together always work perfectly.

* * *

SCAN Datafiles

Name: Homunculus

Origins: Rodney's experiments

Aritificial lifeforms Rodney created, they were meant to deal with dangerous experiments but Rodney felt that it was inhumane and destroyed the formula instead. Muramiya Itsuki somehow stoled one of the test-tubes holding the formula and used it to create his soldiers.

Name: Alien Psychokinos

Origins: Ultraman Mebius

A species of alien with powerful psychic abilities, it was their own power that accidently destroyed their home planet, causing them to wander around the galaxy playing pranks on any planet they visit.

* * *

Chapter 14: Wheelchair Warrior, Part 2

Rodney and Yuka are left injured by the the previous events as General Izuki finds out about his protégé's betrayal. Muramiya Itsuki plans to use Rin and the two missing psychics to command an army of artificial monsters to conquer the Earth. But how did his plan work out so well and where did he get his resources from? As Raptor Team investigates, Yuka needs to find out how to access Nightingale Form on her own will while Toru breaks out of his cell and launches a sabotage/rescue mission on his own.


	14. Chapter 14: Wheelchair Warrior, Part 2

**Chapter 14: Wheelchair Warrior, Part 2**

_When a Psychokino Seijin crash-lands on Earth under mysterious circumstances, Raptor Team finds themselves in a strange predicament. Rin, the Psychokino, is suddenly abducted by Muramiya Itsuki, General Masaki Izuki's protégé, and Rodney ends up injured trying to save both her and Toru. Much worse, General Izuki has been shot in the shoulder and Yuka is severely injured herself trying to fight a strange monster that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Leo transforms to handle the situation while the Wong brothers rush Yuka back to Bastion Cove…_

* * *

"She's going to be fine, but we're not sure when she will wake up," a doctor said to Jake, Rodney, Gen and Captain Iketani as they stood outside Yuka's ward.

"Thank you, doctor," Jake replied, barely able to contain the shakiness of his voice.

"At least… we got her back in time, huh," Rodney replied, his voice still weak.

"Yeah," Jake replied, rather numbly.

"How did this happen in the first place?" the doctor asked.

"She got injured when the monster was fighting Aegis. Debris and stuff like that," Jake replied.

After the strange monster had brutalized Aegis, Gen took over the fight as Leo, allowing Aegis to transform back to Yuka before fainting. Despite his own injuries, Rodney helped Jake get her back into the Lander Wolf. As they made their way back to Bastion Cove, Leo had managed to force the new monster into a corner, but the monster disappeared when he was about to use his Leo Kick on it. Unable to locate it, he had turned back into Gen and returned to base.

"Well, I'll… be going back to my… lab, need to clear up some stuff," Rodney said as he began walking away.

"Tough guy, actually able to walk despite all the injuries," Iketani said.

"But what about Yuka? Will she-" Gen asked.

"She'll be fine. Doctor's not sure when she's waking up though," Jake replied.

Suddenly, the sound of a metal tray and its contents falling to the ground is heard along with a nurse screaming. The three men turned to look, only to find Rodney on the ground, a pool of blood starting to form around him.

"Oh, no, no, no, Roderick! Roderick!"

Jake rushed to his brother's side in a panic. Gen and Iketani followed suit as doctors rushed out of their offices to tend to Rodney.

* * *

"Urgh… damn, this hurts," Toru muttered as he regained counciousness.

Trying to move his hands, he finds that they have been handcuffed to a pipe on a pillar. He appears to be inside some warehouse. In front of him was a strange machine, wired to multiple satellite-like devices as well as several power generators. In the middle of the machine were what appears to be three coffin-like slots, sealed with a red transparent glass. Inside two of the slots were a police officer and a student.

Toru blinked in disbelief as he realized who the two were…

* * *

_Four months ago, November 25 2014_

"_Amazing, it actually lifted one metre above the table!" Rodney said as he held a metre-long ruler between the coffee table and a cup that was floating in the air._

_Toru nodded and turned back to a police officer seated in front of him. Rodney and Toru were conducting experiments on psychics. Out of twenty over participants, only two had been proven to be actual psychics. The police officer, Kanzaki, displayed telekinetic abilities while a high-school student, Souji, is able to read a person's emotions, memories and thoughts by simply touching them._

"_Well, given the results, I guess it is safe to conclude that every human has a bit of psychokinetic energy, but those that are known as 'psychics' possesses five to six times the amount of psychokinetic energy of a normal human," Rodney said as he wrote on a piece of paper, the rest of his notes all over a table behind him._

"_I want to thank you both for taking part in this interview and experiment," Toru said to Kanzaki and Souji, both of whom nodded._

"_So, Rodney, what do you think?" Toru asked later that day._

"_Have enough evidence to turn a few skeptics, but still, the existence of paranormal is always a cause for debate," Rodney replied._

"_I wish everyone would keep an open mind."_

"_Me too, but look at me. Girls run when they see my skin. Not helping that I'm certified half-insane and slightly overweight."_

_Both laughed at Rodney's comments._

* * *

_Present Day_

"No way… Kanzaki and Souji?" Toru asked himself, stunned by the sight.

"Yes, the two psychics you and your crazy friend interviewed last year," Muramiya Itsuki said as he entered the warehouse, with two of his stolen Homunculi soldiers bringing in Rin, still wearing the helmet on her head.

Now that things were not so hectic, Toru finally recognized the helmet Rin was wearing- an anti-psychic energy helmet used to prevent mind-reading Rodney created last year. That very same helmet went missing one week ago, along with the sample of Homuculus formula Rodney was disposing of.

"Toru…" Rin called out to him, her voice weak.

"Strap her inside the third slot," Muramiya said.

"What are you doing? What the hell is that machine?" Toru asked.

"This? A very special gift from some new friends. All I needed to power this crystal inside the machine was psychokinetic energy in order to create a monster born from psychic energy, Orgamundo. I always wondered how I was going to find people with psychic powers until I saw your research by chance while accessing GEAR's confidential files."

"What?" Toru said, suddenly realizing what was going on.

"Normal people couldn't cut it. Ten white rats that ended up dead. So I targeted the two psychics you and Roderick interviewed. The first test run was too good to be true. Aegis was left broken and had to be saved by Leo. Now, with the Psychokino Seijin they promised me, Orgamundo will become invincible! Orgamundo will become the true protector of Earth, not some alien from another planet!"

"Wait, wait, all this to replace Aegis?"

"Yes! What else would I use this monster for?"

"Are you crazy? That thing could end up in the wrong hands and be used as a weapon!"

"No! Only I will have control over it! Orgamundo is the icon of human strength!"

"You sacrificed innocent people just to get it working!"

"They died for a greater cause! And I am done with you, cripple. Beat him half to death and dump him in one of the cells," Muramiya ordered.

Rin, strapped into the remaining slot of the machine, tried to save Toru when a Homuculus took off the helmet she was forced to wear, but the slot was quickly sealed off, preventing her psychic powers from being used. She could only watch helplessly as Toru is brutalized while Muramiya laughed uncontrollably.

* * *

Yuka opened her eyes, wondering what had happened. Looking around, she noticed that she was in the infirmary of Bastion Cove. The last thing she remembered was transforming back into her human form before everything went black. She sat up, only to find Jake sitting beside her bed, asleep.

"Jake, Jake," Yuka called out softly.

Jake stirred, and got up.

"Yuka, you're awake."

"Yeah. What happened?"

"You got so banged up by that new monster that Leo had to come save you. Then you blacked out. Rodney aggravated his wounds helping me drag you into the Lander Wolf."

"Rodney? Is he okay?"

"Er… well…"

"Damn that stupid Izuki! Who the hell promoted him to a General?" Rodney grumbled as he entered the ward, more bandaged up than Yuka. Instead of his usual shirt, lab coat and Kevlar combo outfit, he was just wearing a white t-shirt and medium-length pants. He was also wielding a crutch due to a sprained ankle.

"Ah, Yuka, you've awakened."

"Yep… Hey, thank you both for saving me. Usually I thought I'm the one doing the saving."

"No problem," both brothers said together.

"But what about Toru and Rin? And that weird monster?"

"I'm going to start picking Masaki Izuki's brain apart. Whatever he did to Muramiya, he's responsible for starting the whole mess," Rodney replied curtly and eith an evil smile as he left the ward, holding the door open for Gen Otori to come in.

"Master Leo, I-"

"Save it, Aegis. No one is blaming you. I have gained some knowledge on that monster while fighting it. It appears to be some sort of thought-form."

"A tulpa?"

"Sorry?" Both Yuka and Gen asked.

Jake sheepishly scratched his head.

"It's a concept in mysticism. An object created through sheer mental concentration, a thought-form. Rodney was looking it up a few months back."

An awkward silence followed Jake's explaination.

"I still don't get it," Yuka said at last while Gen shook his head in a disapproving manner.

"Anyway, what cause you to pause in combat yesterday?" Jake asked.

Yuka fell silent immediately.

"Yuka?" Gen asked, his tone gentle this time.

"My other form… I… I don't know how to trigger it…"

"You mean you were trying to switch to Nightingale Form yesterday? But I thought you already know how to do it."

"I don't know… The incident with the Golza and the Melbas… I transformed unconsciously because I was so angry with what happened that I… It doesn't matter anymore. I just need to figure out how to transform into my stronger form. That thought was the one that distracted me before the strange monster thrashed me all over the place."

Jake and Gen stared at Yuka, who was now hanging her head in embarrassment.

* * *

"I want to know everything, Izuki. How did your jack-in-the-box protégé come up with this crazy plot and pull it off so flawlessly? There's too many things that doesn't add up."

Even with his limbs wrapped in bandage and requiring a crutch to walk steadily, Rodney was still a menacing sight since his right arm was okay and he was wielding the crutch like a halberd. It wasn't helping that he was moving it in circles right above Izuki's head. Ren and Kohaku watch as they struggled to hold back their laughter as Rodney continues to torment Izuki.

"The General only as a bullet wound in the shoulder, yet he's scared of someone who's more bandaged up then him." Ren whispered to Kohaku.

"Look, I don't know what is going on myself! Muramiya Itsuki is a young man with a promising future! I don't know what made him do this!" General Izuki defended himself, his arm in a sling due to Muramiya shooting him in the shoulder.

"Guess he's not involved in any way," Anderson commented.

"Rodney!" A female voice shouted.

Everyone turned to look, only to see a rather cute, bespectacled girl with a ponytail running towards Rodney, throwing herself onto him and giving him a hug.

"Eek! My back!" Rodney shrieked as he swung his arms all over the place, both injured and non-injured.

"Oh, Misaki, you're back! That means the rest are-" Anderson got cut off by a gruff voice.

"Yeah, we're back," a large Caucasian man said emotionlessly.

"Guys, I think I should fully introduce my lab team to you all," Rodney said to the rest.

"The big German guy in black is Dieter Bergmann, archaeologist and geologist, 51 years old. That's Sakama Kenji, he's our mortician and psychologist, 38 years old. Itao Wataru, turns 27 this month, he's mute, a biologist. And the crazy girl holding on to me is Ishimura Michiko, 24 years old, speciality chemistry."

Everyone noticed that Masaki Izuki was shivering suddenly.

"Guys… interrogation time," Rodney said with an evil look on his face.

Suddenly, Rodney's lab team had surrounded the bed Izuki was on, with really dark looks on their faces.

"Help?" Izuki whimpered as the others left the ward.

"Why is Izuki so scared of Rodney's teammates?" Kohaku asked.

"Er… I'm not sure about that. Maybe we can ask him later?" Ren replied.

* * *

Toru moved himself into a sitting position, rubbing his jaw. He was covered in bruises, and was nursing a swollen eye, but at least he was fine. Muramiya Itsuki was unaware that he hits the gym despite being a cripple, so that supposed beatdown didn't really do much damage. Looking at his watch, he realized that it was near midnight.

Toru looked around his surroundings. He was locked in a room, with nothing but a hanging lamp in it. Silently, he crawled towards the door and lightly tapped on it. Getting no response, he noticed that there was a grill by the side of the door, large enough for him to crawl out if he could pull the grill off.

He heard footsteps approaching quickly and crawled away from the door towards a corner. He could hear Muramiya speaking outside.

"Yes, yes, I understand. Look, as promised, I'll use Orgamundo to destroy Aegis. Of course, Earth should be protected by us humans, not aliens from some far-away planet."

"I'm afraid you do not understand what our purpose is, Mr Muramiya," a familiar voice replied.

_Katsuima Junichi! What the hell? That means the ones that provided Muramiya with his machine were those strange Verach Seijin I encountered at the Hiroshima Research Facility!_ Toru thought, becoming nervous all of a sudden.

"The Verach Seijin provided you with the machine. They manipulated the Psychokino's ship with magnetic waves to make it fly near Earth without suspecting something was amiss. I shot it down with that cannon you have stored underneath this warehouse. We've given you everything you needed in return for your coorperation in destroying Aegis, which you failed on your first try," Junichi said in a threatening manner.

"Look, I didn't expect Leo to appear! At least I got rid of Roderick Wong!"

Toru's eyes widened on hearing that. He had no idea that Rodney was actually back at Bastion Cove, safe and sound with a lot of injuries though.

"Well, that is true… But don't mess this up the second time. With the Psychokino's infinite supply of psychic energy, Orgamundo will be strong enough to destroy them both."

Silence.

Toru listened carefully as footsteps began to walk away, only to stop suddenly.

"One more thing, Muramiya… My sources indicate that Aegis is able to transform into a stronger version of herself, much stronger than Mebius' Burning Brave. But it seems she has no idea how to access it manually. You better destroy her before she learns how to," Junichi said before walking away for good.

_Are they gone?_ Toru wondered when the door flew open suddenly, and an angry Muramiya stormed in. He turned to see Toru seated at one side and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him up.

"Hey, hey, what are you doing?"

"Shut up, you useless cripple! There's nothing else here for me to get rid of my anger… so you will be my punching bag," Muramiya said as he struck Toru in the face and pinned him against the wall.

"All I wanted was to protect this Earth with my own two hands… Why the hell is everyone making things difficult for me?"

"Cause you let your ego and hero-syndrome get over you?" Toru taunted, causing Muramiya to hit him again.

"What do you know about me? Look at the number of casualties on Kuroshio Island when those two Gillas attacked! And that Hikari, blowing up humans instead of hitting the monster. How many lives were lost because humans relied on Ultramen to protect themselves?"

Toru remained silent, until Muramiya drew his hand back for another punch.

"Firstly, Muramiya, Ultramen risk their own lives to protect us humans, and they suffer for every life they are unable to save," Toru said coldly as he caught Muramiya's wrist, surprising him.

"Secondly, you are the one sacrificing people to protect humans, which makes you no more than a lunatic who wants to be a hero at the expense of others. Third, don't underestimate disabled people. And lastly, you murdered my friend, Rodney."

With that, Toru squeezed and twisted Muramiya's wrist, causing a cracking sound to be heard. Muramiya let out a scream of pain which was immediately cut off by Toru grabbing his mouth, gagging him while causing them both to fall to the ground. Not releasing his grip on Muramiya, Toru forced himself onto Muramiya's back, putting him in a chokehold and pressing his entire body weight onto him until Muramiya goes uncouncious. Now that things were settled, Toru stealthily crawled out of his cell. Noticing a wheeled officer chair in what appears to be an office, he quickly made his way in.

* * *

"How did you both get well so fast?" Ren asked.

"Aegis," Both Yuka and Rodney replied.

"What? You mean-"

"She visited last night. Scared me stupid," Jake answered, playing along with Yuka and Rodney's lie - Yuka had actually regained her strength overnight and managed to heal both herself and Rodney at around three in the morning, where everyone was asleep except for those doing night duties.

"Anyways, any leads on our missing teammate and Psychokino?"

"None. Dean and I searched the entire stretch of road where Rodney rear-ended, but it's a one direction road. No turns, no secret access roads, nothing at all."

"Damn it… C'mon, we can't just give up on our own people. Let's go search again. Besides, Rodney's Psychic Detector should be able to lead us to Rin. She's a Psychokino, after all." Kohaku said encouragingly to her teammates, all of whom were getting stressed over being unable to locate Toru and Rin.

Meanwhile, Rodney was accessing his personal laptop, which he had linked up to SCAN (without authoritization) and appears to be searching through several programs and files on it.

"C'mon, c'mon… heh, found it," he murmered to himself.

"Rodney!"

"Oh crap- brother shield!" Rodney said loudly and in an unnaturally cheerful way as he grabbed Jake and pulled him in front of himself, causing Michiko to end up hugging his younger brother instead and causing Yuka to feel a sudden surge of anger.

"Ah, Jake! Sorry, I was aiming at Rod-" Michiko started apologizing when Yuka decks Rodney had enough to leave an anime-style dent on the back of his head

"Why are you guys here anyway?" Rodney asked, his sentence in full English this time instead of his usual mix-around due to the shock of Yuka hitting him.

"We finished interrogating Izuki. Guess what we found out?" Anderson said as the rest of Rodney's lab team, the Lab C Crew, arrived.

"Muramiya Itsuki lost his parents during the Imperializer attack on Japan when Mebius was on Earth. His mind got twisted by the events and began seeing Ultramen as hindrances and the reason why Earth is always being attacked by monsters and aliens," Kenji explained.

"Izuki found out about him, and after seeing his performances in the army, took him in as his personal protégé, using indoctrination to increase his dislike of Ultras. Of course, it worked too well since Muramiya is pulling off some unknown plan on his own and General Izuki got in the way," Michiko continued.

"So why did he shoot his own mentor?"

"Turns out ol'Izuki wanted to take Rin into custody. He mentioned some super-psychic project that was targeted at Aegis. Seems like he was planning to attack Aegis with artificial psychic power or something," Dieter replied.

"You guys know where this project is?"

"Yeah. Some hidden base in Osaka."

"You all know what to do, right?"

"Oh, hell yeah," everyone in Rodney's team replied in unison as they whipped out heavy construction tools from behind them, the kinds that are usually used in demolitions.

Raptor Team watched as Michiko lead the rest of the Lab C Crew out of the Ops Room, nervous looks on their face.

"Guess Rodney's not the only crazy guy around here," Ren said.

A sudden beeping on Rodney's laptop cause everyone to turn towards him.

"What's that?" Jake asked.

"A location beacon. I had one installed in the left boot of every Raptor Team members. That way, if one of you guys go missing, I can at least manage to track you down using this laptop. I have one in my own boots."

"When did you install these?" Captain Iketani asked.

"While you guys were bathing. I placed the beacons inside your boots. Kind of difficult to do it all at once since you guys use the bathroom at different times. Even more difficult putting them into the girls' boots."

The guys immediately took four steps backwards. Sensing danger, Rodney looked up to see Kohaku smiling at him.

"WARRGHHH!"

"You creep! So you're the moron I saw entering the ladies' bathroom last year when I was inside! Take this!" Kohaku roared as she manhandles Rodney.

"Stop! My injuries! They're reopening!"

"Don't lie! You sid Aegis visited you and Yuka and healed both of you!"

"I said, get off me," Rodney suddenly said in a darker tone, enough to scare Kohaku off him.

"Anyways, if the beacon signal is accurate, this is… oh…" Rodney continued, this time in his normal tone.

"Hey, isn't this on the road we searched just now?" Hideki pointed out.

"I know this place- it's the old Ultra Garrison building. It's been abandoned for 47 years," Captain Iketani said.

"What? Toru's in there?"

"We should go investigate," Dean said when the alarm began ringing.

"There's a monster attack in the middle of Fussa, Tokyo. It's a pair of Twin Tail!" Ayane said as she brought up a live feed of a pair of Twin Tails rampaging down the streets of Fussa as people ran all over the place to get out of its way.

"Dammit, what do we do?" Ren asked.

"I'll get Toru. You guys handle those Twin Tails," Rodney replied as he snapped his laptop shut and walked out of the Ops Room.

"Wait, Rodney, it's too-" Dean said when Jake stopped him.

"Don't worry about Rodney. He and Toru are way much tougher than they look."

* * *

"Captain, we're closing in on the Twin Tails," Hideki reported to Bastion Cove as the Storm Kestrel and Sparrow came closer to the Twin Tail.

"Roger that, commence attack. Try to lure it to open areas while Yuka and Jake handle the evacuation with the local authorities on the ground," Captain Iketani replied as he looked at the screen showing Jake and Yuka along with some police officers helping the civilians get to safety.

"Shintaro, Kimura here. The Assault Unit is ready to assist," Captain Kimura radioed in as well.

"All right, Kimura. Split your men up. I want some of your men attacking the Twin Tail. The rest should assist in evacuation."

Back on the battlefield, Captain Kimura nodded at the rest of his men.

"Roger that, Shintaro. Kimura out. All right, I want Alpha and Delta Squad pouring lead on that overgrown sea slug. Sergeant Seiji, you're in charge. Bravo and Echo Squad, I want you guys to attack with the Armoured Vehicles. Charlie Squad, assist in evacuation. Now, move out!"

"Let's go!" the GCI soldiers shouted in unison as they moved to their respective positions, with Seiji Takehiro leading the assault.

"Hey! Charlie Squad leader!" Jake called out to the GCI sergeant in charge of Charlie Squad, wincing at the fact that his former nemesis shared the same name as the squad of these brave men.

"Yes sir, what can we do to assist?"

"Make sure the civilians do not run into the crossfire. Have some of your men search that building over there for survivors," Jake ordered as the Twin Tail is lured away by the other GCI soldiers.

"Roger that," the sergeant replied.

"At least those Twin Tails are gone. Now we can concentrate on the wounded and the missing," Yuka said as she helped an injured police officer get to his colleagues.

"Yeah, wait, what the-"

A light anomaly suddenly appeared at the location where the Twin Tails were last seen at. Yuka and Jake are shocked to see that it was the same monster that had attacked them yesterday.

"Not it again!" Yuka moaned.

The monster immediately went after the two Twin Tails, ignonring the fact that several GCi soldiers were in its way. If it wasn't for Takehiro's quick reaction by shouting at them to dive into the buildings for cover upon seeing it appear suddenly, a number of them would have been crushed.

* * *

"Captain, it's that creature from yesterday. The one that defeated Aegis and fought with Leo," Hideki radioed in to Bastion Cove.

"Where did it come from?" Captain Iketani asked.

"It just appeared!"

"Captain, according to SCAN, this creature is completely made up of energy," Ayane said as she looked up from the computer screens.

"What, you mean it's one of those Negative Energy monsters 80 fought?"

"No, it's just… energy."

"Captain, that creature's fighting the Twin Tails," Ren's voice came in through the radio.

Ayane and Captain Iketani looked at the screen. True enough, the monster was wrestling with one of the Twin Tail, brutally beating it up.

"Treat that monster as hostile. It attacked Aegis and fought with Leo. Fire on both of them."

"Roger that Captain," both Ren and Hideki said as they prepare to engage both monsters.

Twin Tail tried to escape, but the monster grabbed it and piledriver it to the ground. It then grabbed its head and twisted.

Kohaku looked away while Ren had a disgusted look on his face as the sound of something being torn apart is heard.

"Good Lord, that thing is a brutal creature. Open fire!" Dean said, holding back the urge to puke.

The Storm Kestrel and Sparrow fired on both the monster and the Twin Tail, but the monster did not even bother, more focused on defeating the other Twin Tail instead.

* * *

Toru watched from the vent as Muramiya and his Homunculi guards operated the machine. He had been crawling around the vents of the building since he escaped from his holding cell last night. If he had his wheelchair, he could easily take out Muramiya and stopped the machine, but for now all he can do is stealth.

Toru grimaced at the sight of Rin and the other two human psychics in pain as psychic energy is forcefully drawn from them into the machine, powering the crystal that creates the monster Muramiya calls Orgamundo.

"Damn that cripple. Find him and kill him. Keep an eye out for that damn Aegis. If she shows up, I'll finish her off myself."

The two Homunculi nodded and left. Muramiya continued to operate the machine, but at the same time he kept looking around. Suddenly, he walked away, leaving the machine alone.

Toru crawled back into the vent, turning at a fork with much difficulty before crawling his way through the left turn, which leasd down, coming to a stop near the floor. From there, Toru watched as Muramiya returns with the anti-psychic energy helmet. He watched as Muramiya plugged some cords and wires into the helmet.

"It's better if I control it manually," he muttered as he began throwing punches in the air.

From his viewpoint, Toru could see a screen in front of Muramiya, showing the scene of the battle between Orgamundo and a Twin Tail. Another Twin Tail lay motionless behind a building, its lower half covered from view. It was then Toru realized that Orgamundo was performing the same actions as Muramiya.

_So that's how he controls Orgamundo_, Toru thought.

* * *

Orgamundo (Raptor Team still doesn't know its name except Toru) threw the second Twin Tail headfirst into a building, demolishing it instantly. It then dragged its opponent out and began pummelling it. It then held down the Twin Tail, slapping its head or punching it to the ground whenever it tried to break free.

"Damn that thing, half the neighbourhood's gone. Aegis is much more careful when she fights in a city," Hideki muttered as he continued to pour laser shots on both combatants.

"This is a one-sided fight. It's just toying with the Twin Tail," Ren said, a look on disgust on his face.

Meanwhile, back on the ground, all the local residents have been successfully evacuated. As Charlie Team joined the rest of the Assault Unit in firing at Orgamundo, Jake turned to look at Yuka, who had already summoned her Shield Bracers.

"You sure about this?"

"Yeah. The truth is, I lose to it yesterday because I did not know how to access the Nightingale Form on my own."

"And you know how to now?"

"No."

"What? Then how are you-"

"I'll fight it as my normal form."

"You seem eager."

"Yeah, but it's not because of what that damn thing did to me yesterday. Much as Twin Tail is considered an enemy… I can't take it anymore, watching this brutality."

Jake watched as Yuka transform into Aegis as she leapt into the air and delivered a flying kick on Orgamundo, causing him to release the surviving Twin Tail, which quickly hid behind some buildings to recover from its injuries.

Orgamundo got up quickly, and faced off against Aegis. After three seconds of staring at each other, the two rushed at each other, their fists colliding with each other's face at the same time. This time, Aegis had the stronger fist, and she managed to send Orgamundo sprawling.

* * *

Toru watched as Muramiya fell to the ground, clutching his face the same way Orgamundo was after getting hit by Aegis.

"So they can feel each other's pain," he whispered.

Getting up from the ground, Muramiya began throwing punches and kicks in mid-air. On screen, Orgamundo does the same, except his attacks were hitting Aegis.

Seizing the chance, Toru removed the vent grills and crawled towards Muramiya, waiting until Muramiya attempted a kick before grabbing one of his legs and bringing him down.

Back on the battlefield, Aegis is surprised when Orgamundo fell. Confused but seizing the opportunity, she jumped on Orgamundo and began attacking it.

Meanwhile, the Lander Wolf stopped outside the abandoned former Ultra Garrison base. Two Homunculi guards approached the driver, who was dressed as a GCI soldier wearing a motorbike helmet, only for the driver to attack, striking through their helmet visors with a nightstick hard enough to send them crashing to the ground. A hissing voice is heard as the Homunculi deflated into a puddle, leaving their outfits and helmets. The driver then placed a C-4 bomb on the entrance.

Turning back to the brawl between Toru and Muramiya, Toru was trying to force the helmet off Muramiya, but the latter was much more resistant and managed to throw Toru off, slamming him against the glass panel of the machine's slot that held Rin. The impact woke up the unconscious Rin, and she saw to her horror Toru and Muramiya fighting with each other. Muramiya was trying to get up, but Toru kept pulling him back down, finally pulling the helmet off him and causing him to fall face-first against the machine's crystal, shattering it.

"What have you done? Now Orgamundo will rampage without stopping! And what is this… why am I hearing so many things in my mind?"

"Aegis will fix your monster. Right now, you have to deal with me," Toru replied as he grappled with Muramiya.

With a roar of rage, Muramiya pulled himself onto his feet, picking up Toru at the same time, lifting him above his head before throwing him brutally against the glass panel of Rin's slot, shattering it. He then pulled out a pistol and aimed it at Toru, ready to finish him off when the door to the room exploded, shocking him into dropping the pistol which Toru grabbed and pointed at its owner.

The black driver who had arrived earlier walked into the room, cracking his knuckles.

"Guards!" Muramiya shouted, causing several Homunculi soldiers to appear, all wielding crowbars, hammers and other improvised weapons.

The driver shrugged, and took off his helmet, revealing none other than Rodney.

"Rodney! You're alive!" Toru shouted with pleasant surprise, having believed that Muramiya had really killed him.

Rodney didn't answer- his face was a complete blank and his eyes appear glazed over.

Toru turned his attention back at Muramiya, who had suddenly slumped against the machine. His forehead was bleeding from a cut, and his head was also swelling up for some reason. Not wasting the chance, Toru used the pistol to free Rin from her restaints by shooting off the bolts that held the straps.

"Toru, are you all right? But why is Roderick-"

"I told you he's not what you think," Toru told a stunned Rin.

Rodney pointed at Muramiya, his face still blank.

"Wo yao da quan bu (I want to fight all)," he said in Chinese.

"Oh boy… He's really mad now. Angry mad," Toru said.

"Why?" Rin asked.

"He usually speaks in Japanese mixed with Chiense dialects and English, but when he is really pissed off, he begins speaking in complete Chinese," Toru explained.

_Although, why did he use a modified version of Ip Man's "I want to fight ten people" quote_, Toru thought.

"What are you all waiting for? Kill him!" Muramiya shouted.

The Homunculi rushed at Rodney, who proceeds to unleash hell on them. Southpaw, Wing Chun, Karate, Capoeira, even dirty street brawl tactics and a for-some-reason-successful mimicry of a Shoryuken were thrown in. Within moments, the entire Homunculi soldiers were wiped out, melting into puddles.

"What- how is that possible? They were supposed to be invincible! You made them invincible!" Muramiya screamed.

"Yeah, I did, but I also put in a fail-safe should they be used by people like you. Blunt force trauma to any part of the face and jaw will kill them instantly. All my experiments always have a fail-safe. Anyways, you seem to have developed psychic abilities, Muramiya, but unable to control them" Rodney replied, now speaking his usual mix-around of Japanese, Chinese and English.

True enough, Muramiya could hear the thoughts of Rin, Trou and the two other psychics. No matter what he do, their thoughts kept pouring into his mind.

"Make it stop… Make it stop!"

"Rin, free the other two."

Rin immediately hit a button on the machine, releasing the two other psychics, Kanzaki and Souji, from their restraints.

"Huh, what happened?" Kanzaki asked.

"No time to explain. The three of you, do not try to read my mind," Rodney said as he took off his glasses.

Immediately, Muramiya grabbed his swollen head in pain, screaming for it to stop as he thrashed around, his nose and ears bleeding. Curious, Rin tries to read a bit of Rodney's mind, only to be greeted by a horrible cacophony of screams, metal rubbing with each other and other horrible things, along with a severe pain.

"Rin! Stop, don't read his mind!" Toru said as he held Rin down.

"What the… what's wrong with him?" Rin asked, tears streaming down her face.

Muramiya stopped screaming and went limp as Rodney put his glasses on again.

"The first psychic that tried to read my mind died a month later. Apparently, attempting to read the mind of a person comfirmed to have mental issues is dangerous, if not outright deadly if one's body cannot handle the stress. I'm certified half-insane, and the helmet over there was made to protect the psychics from me. So are my glasses."

Rin looked surprised, while Toru gave her an I-told-you-so look.

"C'mon, let's get you guys out of here. I'll come back for Muramiya later," Rodney said as he single-handedly hoist up all four of them and left the base.

Muramiya was now alone, laying catatonic in front of his machine. From the corner of his eye, he saw Katsuima Junichi walk towards him.

"How sad… It seems you've failed," Katsuima said.

"Katsuima…" Muramiya uttered, only for Katsuima to grab the crystal that the machine was powering and ram it into Muramiya's chest

* * *

Orgamundo gave a roar of pain as energy begins forming around him. At Bastion Cove, Ayane looked at the screen in horror.

"Caprtain, that monster's power level is increasing rapidly!"

"Dammit… Captain Kimura! Get your men out of there! Raptor team, same thing!" Captain Iketani shouted through the communicator.

At the battlefield, a general order to retreat was sounded as GCI soldiers pulled back in their Armoured Vehicles. Orgamundo meanwhile grew in size and unleashed several bolts of energy, striking the Storm Kesterl and Sparrow, causing them both to crash.

"Sergeant! They crashed!" a GCI soldier said to Takehiro.

"What? Ah, crap… Guys, immediate rescue! Move! Leave no man behind!"

Spurred by Takehiro's words, the GCI soldiers stopped retreating and rushed back, determined to save the Raptor Team pilots. Jake followed them, worried about his team-mates. Seeing what they're doing, Aegis grabbed Orgamundo and flew. Seeing a huge open space, she threw Orgamundo towards it, causing it to land hard on the ground. Now that they were in a safe place to fight, Aegis stopped holding back and began fighting with Orgamundo again, but this time, Orgamundo was faster, unleashing a huge bolt of energy from its mouth and knocking Aegis on her back.

Dazed, Aegis got up, only to see to her shock that Orgamundo now resembles a bald human while retaining the black fur and scales as well as the claws.

_What the… what sort of monster is this?_ Aegis thought as she got up.

Orgamundo roared and charged at her, once again turning the battle in its favour as it overpowered Aegis.

Meanwhile, Jake was running towards the battle when the Lander Wolf appeared.

"Rodney! What are you doing here?"

"Get in, Aegis is in trouble. I got Rin and Toru, by the way. For some reason the Psychokino keeps treating me really nice," Rodney said as he opened the door.

"Okay," Jake replied as he got in.

The Lander Wolf then sped towards the battle, with Toru filling the Wong brothers in on Muramiya's monster

Back to the fight between Aegis and Orgamundo, Aegis was clearly having the disadvantage. Her Color Timer blinking, Aegis was floored by Orgamundo, and everytime she tried to get up, Orgamundo kicks her back onto the ground.

_Curse this! If only I can access Nightingale Form without losing myself to rage… This is it… I'm too injured to put up a proper offense… Everyone… Leo, Ayane, Rodney, Jake… I'm sorry,_ Aegis thought, a great feeling of pain and sadness in her heart as she was thrown against a large building, slumping to the ground.

"Is she giving up?"

"No, please don't!"

"C'mon, Aegis!"

"Get up, Aegis! Please!"

The thoughts of the civilians who were watching from a safe distance began flooding Aegis' mind. But it was a sharp, rebuking shout that caught her attention.

"Get up, you dumb giant!"

It was Toru.

He wasn't alone. Rin, Rodney, Jake, a police officer and a male student were with him as well.

"Get up! Aegis! You want to protect us, or you want to lie down there and be an easy kill? Look at yourself. You've got superpowers, you can fly and punch monsters through buildings while us humans only manage to piss them off with you little weapons. Don't just lie there like you've given up on us! Or have you? Look at me! I'm a bloody cripple! My knees are shattered to oblivion, but I'm still a member of Raptor Team! If I can continue to assist my comrades in battle despite my condition, why can't you? Get up, for everyone's sake," Toru shouted at Aegis.

"He's right, Aegis! You're not alone! No one said you should defend this Earth on your own! If you need assistance, just reach out and ask!" Rodney shouted too as he fired the Capsuvolver.

In an instant, the Capsule Monsters Gorakle, Kevanix and Evisark have appeared, landing on Orgamundo and holding him down. Orgamundo managed to throw them off, only to be hit from behind by a familiar purple energy.

Everyone turned to see Golza, Snowgon and Gubira charging at Orgamundo. Even the injured Twin Tail which escaped the fate of its partner joined in, actually putting itself between Aegis and Orgamundo, choosing to protect the Ultra instead of attacking her.

"Looks like we've gained a new monster ally," Rodney remarked as the seven monsters pile up on Orgamundo.

"There's us too!" a familiar voice shouted.

It was Ren, armed with the Pulse Launcher and standing on top of a n Armoured Vehicle. He and the rest of Raptor Team were at the other side of the battlefield, along with every single member of the Assault Unit, including the new sergeant Takehiro and Captain Kimura. All their weapons are aimed at Orgamundo.

"Aegis! See, everyone's here, ready to assist in any possible way they can. You have protected us for a while now… We should step up on our performance. I mean, we can't keep relying on outside help to protect our own planet, right? No offense, but I think it's time we repay as much debt we owe the Ultras as we can," Jake said.

"Don't forget the civilians too. See how they keep begging you not to give up," Toru added as he pointed at the civilians.

_You guys… I…_ Aegis thought as guilt sets in, realizing that she had shamed herself for giving up while the humans are still fighting for her.

It was then a purple light began shining from her right hand. Aegis does not know what it was about, but for some reason, she suddenly realized what is required.

Strength, determination, not losing my heart to despair… Humans are really… a force to reckon with des[ite their flaws… Aegis thought as she finally understood how to unlock her stronger form.

Standing up, she placed her right hand, curled into a fist, above her Color Timer. As the purple light around her fist began glowing brighter, she pulled her arm sideways before instantly stretching her right arm out sideways. Immediately, a purple cloak of energy appeared behind her, attached to her like a cape. Within seconds, the cape was wrapped itself around her, and as soon as it was finished it shattered, revealing Aegis in her Nightingale Form.

"She did it!" jake screamed in joy as he jumped up and throw his fist into the air.

Everyone began cheering as Aegis, now ready to fight again, beckoned the allied monsters to back off before launching at Orgamundo, delivering several hard-hitting punches so fast that it seemed like she suddenly gained ten extra arms. She then picked up Orgamundo and threw it up into the air before jumping up and delivering a downward kick, sending it crashing to the ground. As Orgamundo got up, Aegis grabbed its right arm and with a mighty shout, tears it off, sending sparks of energy flying all over the place.

* * *

Junichi watch as Muramiya screamed in agony as he clutched his right arm.

* * *

Aegis puts Orgamundo into a Boston Crab Hold, applying pressure to it before breaking its left leg off.

* * *

Muramiya screamed even louder as pain shot up his left leg, as though someone was sawing it off while beating it with a hammer

* * *

Aegis jumped back and activates her Nightingale Arrow. Taking aim, she fires a powerful bolt of purple energy at Orgamundo. Normally, the attack would have destroyed any monster, but Orgamundo managed to hold on to life. Seeing this, Aegis moved into the stance she used when firing the Lumiante Shot. This time, however, instead of white and light green energy, a purple energy beam is fired, striking Orgamundo. This time, Orgamundo fell, its body exploding into energy particles.

* * *

A final, dying scream, and the crystal explodes into pieces, the impact smashing Muramiya through the ground. Junichi walked over calmly to look at Muramiya, although his face twisted into one of slight disgust at the sight of Muramiya's corpse.

"Huh, well, Muramiya, it's sad to see you go like that. Hope you are able to rest… in pieces…" Junichi said in a sarcastic tone before leaving, blowing up the machine as he goes.

* * *

Aegis sat down, tired from the battle as the allied monsters gathered around her. Beckoning the injured Twin Tail over, she began healing it of its injuries as the GCi soldiers cheered and fired their weapons in the air. All around her, everyone was celebrating, even the monsters, although they are careful not to jump around.

Looknig around, Aegis ponders for a while, before placing two fingers on her head. Everyone stopped, wondering what she was trying to do.

"Thank you… Everyone…"

Everyone was shocked. Where did those words come from? But then they quickly realized what was going on. Aegis was thanking them, communicating via telepathy.

"No, Aegis… It's us who should thamnk you… and every other Ultramen who protected our planet!" A man, a construction worker, shouted back.

Aegis simply nodded, and beckoned for Snowgon, Golza and Gubira to take the Twin Tail with them. Then, as Rodney recalled the Capsule monsters, Aegis gave everyone a simple salute before taking off into the air, to the cheers of everyone.

* * *

Jake waited at the Storm Owl, wondering where Yuka is. Everyone has left, but he had stayed. Toru volunteered to stay with him, so Jake agreed. Toru was inside the Storm Owl, asleep after his long ordeal. Rodney was on his way back to collect Muramiya, along with Rin. The police officer Kanzaki and the male student Souji had been taken to a nearby hospital for medical; check up after what they went through.

Footsteps were heard, causing Jake to turn around. It was Yuka, who was extremely exhausted.

"Hi… I'm back…" she said before collapsing.

"Woah there… I got you, superhero," Jake said gently as he caught Yuka.

"Thank you all… I would have failed if you guys haven't shown up… Especially Toru," Yuka whispered, too tired to talk at her usual voice.

"Yeah… time you got some rest," Jake replied.

_I don't get it… I don't feel like letting her go… Why do I want to hold her longer? _Jake wondered.

_This is strange… For some reason, I don't want him to let go of me,_ Yuka thought to herself.

"Did I hear that correctly?" Toru suddenly asked.

Both Yuka and Jake gave a shriek as they let go of each other.

"Er… sorry," Toru said sheepishly.

"Well… no point hiding from him anymore…" Yuka said as she summoned one of her Shield Bracers and showed it to Toru.

"woah… Then, you really are…"

"Keep it a secret for now, okay? Damn, it's getting harder to hdie your identity from everyone, Yuka," Jake commented.

"Well, I had no choice but to transform in front of Rodney. And I got careless this time around Toru," Yuka replied.

"It's a secret, Toru. If it leaks out I'll get Rodney to do horrible, horrible things to you," jake said in a comical threatening way.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it! Stop doing that face!" Toru snapped back as he tried to get away from Jake.

"Hey, guys… bad news…" Rodney's voice came in through the Storm Owl's communicater, loud and grim.

Everyone got into the Storm Owl at the sound of the words 'bad news'.

"What happened? What do you mean bad news?"

"Machine's blown up, Muramiya's in pieces, and I found a red card with a black skull on it."

"Red card with a black skull?"

"Dr Kurasaki showed me a card once. She said it was dropped by someone who tried to shoot Yuka when she was confronting Ren about something back at Bastion Cove. It had the same design and colour."

Jake remembered. Yuka had gone to confront Ren about his negative attitude towards her earlier this year. Ren ended up saving her from a laser shot, causing Jake and Dean to dash into the woods after the attacker along with a dozen GCI soldiers. They later found out that it was Katsuima Junichi.

"Katsuima…" Jake muttered, a dark look on his face.

"I don't know what's going on… But I have a feeling that things are about to get ugly," Rodney said ominously.

"Yeah, Jake out," Jake replied as he closed the hatch and cargo door of the Storm Owl before taking off and flying back towards Bastion Cove…

* * *

SRDID Personnel Profile: Roderick 'Rodney' Tetsuya Wong (王 徹也)

Age: 25/Height: 180cm/Weight: 78kg

Hair: Short, straight, usually in a mess, black/Eyes: Grey

An expert on nanotechnology, paranormal studies and biology as well as being absolutely unpredictable in terms of thinking and actions. Older brother of Raptor Team member Jake Wong. Suffers from eczema and what he describes as 'half-insanity'. Known to display sudden bursts of superhuman strength when fully provoked, Rodney is notorious for favouring a fire extinguisher as a weapon. Good friends with Toru, they are a force to be reckoned with in the field of science. Due to poor grasp of Japanese language, his sentences are constantly mixed with Chinese dialect, English and Japanese. In charge of Lab C.

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SCAN Datafiles

Name: Orgamundo

Origins: Original Creation

Muramiya Itsuki used the psychic energies of Rin and two other psychics to create this artificial monster in an attempt to upstage Aegis as the protector of Earth with the help of the Verach Seijin. Failing that task, he was forcefully merged with the monster and was killed when Aegis destroyed Orgamundo.

(Muramiya feeling Orgamundo's pain is inspired by the artist and Garan from Ultraman Ace episode 4)

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Chapter 15: The Witch and the Siren

Sightings of a witch around a countryside in Sakata prompt Yagami Eiji, now working for GEAR, to investigate. He returns with photographs of the witch, with SCAN, Gen and Yuka immediately identifying the witch as Giranbo, a monster from another world (specifically, Tiga and Dyna's), causing GEAR to rush to Sakata to prevent the children from being kidnapped but it's too late- the children have eaten the witch's candy and are now being controlled by her flute, and to make things worse, Yuka is captured. Now, Raptor Team must rely on Rodney and the Lab C Crew, now including Rin, to find a way to beat Giranbo, and the answer might lie in Ayane's hidden talent…

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**Random Info: In Chapter 6, I had a minor character named Itsuki who only appeared for the first three pages of the chapter. Muramiya Itsuki is not the same person as him. Also, check out previous chapters 8 to 10 for information about the three Capsule Monsters (Gorakle the gorilla monster, Kevanix the firebird monster and Evilsark the fish monster)**


End file.
